<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>Finding Family by BiSisters</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28282575">Finding Family</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/BiSisters/pseuds/BiSisters'>BiSisters</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Among Us (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Found Family, I'm a sucker for found family, Light Angst, Mutual Pining, No Smut, Nobody has a gender because i am too lazy to give them one, Other, They adopt kids, children have various color names, kind of slow burn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 23:00:15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>35,564</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28282575</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/BiSisters/pseuds/BiSisters</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A team of crewmates is sent to a now-destroyed colony. </p><p>Black finds that even after being infected with a parasite that's supposed to change them, it doesn't change their feelings for White... </p><p>Also they adopt a bunch of kids and it's cute, okay?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Black/White (Among Us), Blue/Green (Among Us), Crewmate &amp; Impostor (Among Us), Pink/Yellow (Among Us)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>82</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Welcome to the Skeld!</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>White glanced at the cheerful crewmate in cyan at their side. They seemed eager, nearly vibrating with excitement, and White stifled a laugh. It was surely their first mission. </p><p>	White themself had been on a few short missions, just transport trips to get them used to being on a ship. The mission they were about to embark on was going to be their first big one- and their most dangerous so far. White’s mind was a swirl of worry and excitement. They’d been warned that this would be dangerous, yet they’d accepted it anyways. <i>Was that a mistake?</i></p><p>	There was no time to regret their choices now. Someone in a sleek suit, some kind of secretary probably, had entered the waiting room where White and Cyan stood. </p><p>	“The Skeld is ready for your arrival,” they said with a glowing smile, leading White and Cyan out of the waiting room and into the launch bay. White’s suitcase half-dragged on the tile due to a broken wheel, and White cursed under their breath, knowing it was too late to get a new one. </p><p>	“This is so exciting,” the crewmate in cyan said as they walked. White could tell from their voice that they were indeed eager.</p><p>	“Your first mission?” White asked them, and they bobbed their head up and down. </p><p>	“Yours?”</p><p>	White shook their head. “No, I’ve done a few transports before.”</p><p>	Cyan stared at them in awe for a few seconds before they nearly tripped on a stair. Their suitcase flew out of their hands as they tried to steady themself, and White let out a chuckle. </p><p>	“Eep!” Cyan windmilled their arms for balance, then barely stopped their suitcase from tumbling the rest of the way down the stairwell. White laughed as the person leading them continued down the hall, not paying any attention to the two’s antics. “I-I’m good!” </p><p>	“You sure?” White asked their clumsy crewmate as they continued walking, and Cyan merely nodded, likely embarrassed. </p><p>	Waiting for them in front of the ship they’d be taking, the Skeld, was a crewmate in red. </p><p>	“Welcome!” They said, waving. White could barely hear them over the mechanical noises that echoed from nearby ships. </p><p>	“I’m Red. I’ll be your captain,” Red told them as they boarded, and White and Cyan introduced themselves in turn. They sat down in the launchroom, a square room lined with seats. The crewmates were supposed to gather in it while the ship took off in case of any unexpected turbulence. </p><p>	White glanced around the launchroom. There were seven of them in total- besides themself, Red and Cyan, there were Pink, Orange, Purple and Yellow. All of them had their helmets on, so it was impossible for White to distinguish their features. </p><p>	The launch went without any issues, as they usually did. Once the ship was safely out of the atmosphere, the crewmates began to leave the launchroom, presumably to do their daily tasks throughout the ship. </p><p>	Red instructed White and Cyan to leave their belongings in Bunkroom 3 and then come to the cafeteria for briefing. White carefully tucked their baggage in the rack above their bunk, then hurried to the cafeteria, not even bothering to take in the ship as they usually would. </p><p>	Red sat at the middle table.</p><p>	“I assume you’ve both brought your tablets and ID’s?” Red asked as White and Cyan approached. They both nodded. White was holding their tablet, and Cyan withdrew theirs from a little drawstring bag as they sat down. Red had their helmet off, revealing their dark hair, which gently framed the sides of their face. They were smiling, a friendly gesture which White took to mean they hopefully weren’t the strict type of captain. White removed their helmet as Red began to speak again.</p><p>	“Great, I’m glad to see I’ve got a competent crew. Now, our official mission is to study the remains of a Polus base that MIRA has suspected to have collapsed due to an Imposter breach.” White noticed Cyan’s eyebrows fly up at the mention of imposters. No doubt, the crewmate had been told the gruesome stories of what happened when they impersonated humans and began to kill those around them. </p><p>	White was a bit concerned themself. Having only done transfer missions before, they’d never actually gone to any colonies on known imposter-containing planets. </p><p>	“We’ve got two more stops to make to pick up crewmates, but for now I’ll introduce you to those that are present.” Red stood up from the table. “Feel free to leave your helmets on the table, we’ll be back here soon.” They led White and Cyan down into the admin room, where Orange was fiddling with the admin display panel. </p><p>	“Ayye! Here’re the two new crewmates.” Orange wiped their hands on their suit and then shook White’s and Cyan’s hands. As Orange stood over White, White realized just how <i>tall</i> the crewmate was. They had to be at least a foot taller than White.<br/>
A little chirp sounded, and White glanced down to see a robot rolling out from behind the admin table. </p><p>	“And there’s Bob!” Orange clapped their hands, and the robot headed towards the noise, chirping happily as Orange patted it on the head. Well, it wasn’t really a head, but it appeared to be a sensor of some kind. White didn’t really know that much about robotics, or really much beyond MIRA’s basic software and communication systems. </p><p>	“It’s cute!” Cyan squealed, and White bobbed their head up and down in agreement. The robot was more than cute- it was downright adorable. </p><p>	“Hi, buddy.” White knelt down as the robot approached them. It stopped in front of them, then made a beep. A monitor on the side facing White read [HELLO WHITE].</p><p>	“It knows me!” White couldn’t help but clasp their hands together in joy as the robot approached Cyan. </p><p>	Orange nodded proudly. “I programmed it to recognize colors. It says hi to every new person it meets.” </p><p>	“I see the newbies have met Bob.”</p><p>	White turned to see Pink standing in the doorway, removing their helmet and shaking out their brown hair. They grinned as Bob turned and rolled up to them. </p><p>	“Ah, and this is Pink.” Red introduced them. “Pink, Orange, White’s our communications officer, and Cyan’s our policy specialist.” </p><p>	“Who are you to call them newbies? You’ve only been on the ship for three days,” Orange teased as they walked over to Pink and ruffled their hair. </p><p>	“Hey!” Pink swatted Orange’s hand away. “Not my hair, I just brushed it.” They pulled a small brush out of a pocket in their suit and began running it through their hair. </p><p>	Red rolled their eyes, though the smile remained on their face. “Okay, I’ve got to introduce White and Cyan to the others now. Orange, let me know when you’ve fixed that display issue.”</p><p>	Orange nodded and returned to their work as Red ushered White and Cyan out of the room. They headed back through the cafeteria, then down a hallway and into another room.</p><p>	“Welcome to Medbay. Purple, Yellow, come meet the new crewmates.” Red beckoned over the two. </p><p>	“Hello.” Purple waved a bit from across the room, then turned back to the machine they were using to do something with test tubes. “I’m a bit busy right now, but welcome onboard.”</p><p>	Yellow looked White and Cyan up and down as they approached. White couldn’t help but feel like they were being judged somehow.</p><p>	“Hi!” Cyan, ever so eager, grinned as they looked around. “It’s so clean in here.” </p><p>	“It’s got to be. Wounds get infected easily.” There was a sarcastic edge to Yellow’s tone, though Cyan didn’t seem to be bothered. </p><p>	“Purple’s our medical officer, and Yellow’s our nurse,” Red explained. “If you’ve got any sort of injury, just visit them in Medbay.” </p><p>	“Nice to meet you,” White said. </p><p>	“Well, we’ll be off now. I’ve got to give them a tour of the ship,” Red told Yellow, who didn’t respond as Red led White and Cyan out. </p><p>	For the next twenty minutes, Red showed White and Cyan around the ship, explaining the rooms they’d be working in. White would be in the communications room for most of their tasks. The communications room was not unlike that of any other ship White had been on- there was a single desk, along with a lot of equipment used to maintain a signal and transcribe messages. Everything was thankfully already set up, so White wouldn’t have to do it themselves. </p><p>	The rest of the day was spent adjusting to the atmosphere of the ship. White’s only task for the day was to contact HQ and send them a weekly report from Red. It was a simple task, barely taking five minutes, and White picked up their tablet and helmet and headed to the cafeteria afterwards. </p><p>	It was almost 18:00, the usual time for the evening meal, and White spotted Cyan and Pink already occupying the middle table. </p><p>	“Hi, White!” Pink called, and Cyan waved White over. </p><p>	“Are you guys going to eat?” White asked, and Pink shook their head. </p><p>	“The meal dispenser doesn’t start offering the evening meal ‘till 18 sharp,” they explained, and White checked their watch to see that it was five minutes early. </p><p>	“Is it like that on every ship?” Cyan questioned. </p><p>	“Not most I’ve been on,” White responded. They eyed Cyan’s drawstring bag. “What’re you keeping in there, anyways?”</p><p>	“I’ll show you!” Cyan moved their bag from their lap to the cafeteria table and opened it. “Here’s my tablet… And my notepad…” They named items as they removed them from the bag- a fidget cube, an inhaler, and finally, a small disc with some sort of emblem engraved into it. </p><p>	“What’s that?” Pink asked, motioning to the disc. </p><p>	“Ah, it’s a religious thing,” Cyan responded, picking it up and running their fingers over the emblem. White nodded, noting the care they handled the item with. <i>It must be important.</i></p><p>	Their conversation was interrupted by Yellow dumping their tablet on the table and plopping down on the bench. </p><p>	“What’s all this?” Yellow asked, raising an eyebrow as they inspected the contents of Cyan’s bag. </p><p>	“What I keep in my drawstring!” Cyan smiled as they waved an arm over their possessions. Yellow wrinkled their nose a little. </p><p>	“Hm. Anyways, has anyone seen Orange? They borrowed my sparkly nail polish yesterday and I need to yell at them for not giving it back.”</p><p>	“Oh, there.” Pink pointed towards the doorway that led to the weapons room.</p><p>	“Orange!” Yellow hurried towards the crewmate, who froze. “Where’s my nail polish?” </p><p>	“Uhh-,” Orange glanced up towards the ceiling as if trying to remember. “...I think I left it in the locker room, sorry.”</p><p>	“Hmph. For a co-captain, you’re really disorganized… How would you like it if I kidnapped Bob and hid them in the locker room?” White could tell Yellow was only half-joking.</p><p>	“Hey, don’t bring Bob into this. I’ll get your polish, chill.” Orange strutted towards the locker room. “Kids these days,” they muttered just loud enough for White and the others sitting at the middle table to hear. White fought a laugh. </p><p>	“Hmph.” Yellow returned to the table just as Red entered the room and joined them. </p><p>	“What’s going on?” Red asked, and the others exchanged glances, each worrying they’d burst out laughing if they tried to explain Yellow and Orange’s predicament. </p><p>	“<i>Some</i>one lost my nail polish,” Yellow sniffed, and White and Pink couldn’t contain their giggles any more. Yellow glared at them. “Does nobody know how to act like an adult here?” </p><p>	“It’s just nail polish, you’re the one acting like a teenager,” Pink snorted. Though White agreed with them, they didn’t want to antagonize Yellow before they’d properly met. Plus, White already felt that they might be making a bad impression by laughing. </p><p>	Orange rejoined them, handing Yellow their nail polish. </p><p>	“Finally.” Yellow stuffed the polish into a pocket in their suit.</p><p>“Chill, kid,” Orange replied nonchalantly as Red got up and headed for the meal dispenser. </p><p>	“You aren’t my parent,” Yellow retorted, which got a laugh out of Orange.</p><p>	“You’re damn right, kid, but I <i>am</i> your… What do they call it? Vodka Aunt? Well, I’m that.” Orange flashed them a toothy smile, but Yellow just rolled their eyes. </p><p>	<i>At least the crew of this ship isn’t horribly toxic</i>, White thought, recalling the arguments of other crews they’d endured. The atmosphere of the ship was pleasant, though they hoped the bickering of the others wouldn’t turn into toxicity.<br/>
“All right, settle down.” Red returned from the meal dispenser carrying a tray full of bowls. White grinned as they saw the meal of the day was some kind of nice-smelling soup. The meals MIRA provided to their crews ranged in quality, but at worst, the taste could be downright nauseating. </p><p>	“Thank you!” Cyan took a bowl, and White echoed their thanks. </p><p>	As they ate, Red explained that the next crewmate would be picked up in two days from a Mars base. Purple joined the group, though they rarely looked up from their tablet as the others talked. </p><p>	“We’ve been granted a quick ship since MIRA considers this mission important,” Red stated. “It is the collapse of a colony, after all.” </p><p>	“Why’re they sending only eleven crewmates to the collapse of an entire colony?” Pink asked, twirling a lock of hair around one finger. </p><p>	“It’s a small colony, less than a hundred people,” Red said. “It was built due to an expansion of the research base there; we’re just supposed to see if it can be inhabited again.” </p><p>	White had to admit they were a bit worried. They, like any other crewmate, had heard countless stories of the damage imposters could do. They didn’t really want to go running around the stomping grounds of one. </p><p>	<i>Ah, not much I can do now,</i> they mused, watching Red snatch a chocolate bar from Orange and lecture them on healthy eating. <i>It can’t be that bad, anyways…</i></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Black</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Black arrives on the ship, and White doesn't make the best first impression</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“We’ve arrived,” Red informed the crew as they waited in the launchroom. Red exited the ship and returned a moment later with a crewmate in black, who quickly deposited their luggage on the rack above their seat and sat down for launch. </p><p>	The launch went off without a hitch, as usual. White was about to leave the launchroom when Black suddenly cursed, and White turned to see them clutching their foot. </p><p>	“Are you okay?” White asked at the same time as Red, who gave them a quizzical look as if to ask, <i>Why are you in here?</i></p><p>	Taking the hint, White scurried out of the launchroom, bumping into Cyan who had been waiting for them in the hall. </p><p>	“Did something happen?” Cyan asked, and White shook their head. </p><p>	“Nothing,” they said, heading for the communications room. Cyan followed.</p><p>	“Don’t you have tasks?” White asked them as they walked. Cyan never really seemed to do much, maybe working on their tablet an hour a day from what White could tell.</p><p>	Cyan shrugged. “My job’s more just making sure everything goes according to MIRA policy. That basically just means basic ethics and memorizing MIRA’s rulebook, so not much to do.”</p><p>	“Ah.” White continued down the hall, nodding to Orange in Admin as they passed. </p><p>	White didn’t have many tasks for the rest of the day either. They’d already finished most of them, which mainly consisted of listening to some nearby signals to make sure none of the nearby ships or bases had any issues. </p><p>	“Let’s play cards,” White suggested. They’d brought the deck mainly to try and impress people with their shuffling skills. </p><p>	“Sounds fun,” Cyan agreed, and the two sat down across from each other on the floor of the communications room. White carefully took the deck of cards out from their pocket and began shuffling them.</p><p>	“You’re good,” Cyan marveled, and White couldn’t help but grin. </p><p>	The two played a few rounds of cards on the communication room floor. White was glad that Cyan seemed to enjoy spending time with them, and they were sure Cyan was also happy to have found a friend on their first mission. </p><p>	“And here’s the communication room.” Red’s voice made White look up in surprise. In the doorway stood Red and the new crewmate, Black. “White, Cyan, meet Black, they’re one of our technicians.”</p><p>	White hadn’t really gotten a good look at Black until now. Their helmet was off, revealing their long, dark hair and tan skin. Their expression was seemingly mild, though White wasn’t sure if they were concealing some hidden nervousness. </p><p>	“Nice to meet you!” Cyan addressed Black, who nodded.</p><p>	“Thank you, you too,” Black responded softly. <i>They must be shy,</i> White thought. The new crewmate was avoiding their eyes, choosing to take a quick glance around the room before Red told them it was best to continue with their tour of the ship.</p><p>	“Let us know if you need anything,” White called after them as Red led them away. </p><p> </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black gazed around the ship as Red led them through the rooms. They’d already been introduced to their crewmates- of course, there was the captain Red, who was currently showing them around, as well as co-captain Orange who seemed to be friendly with everyone. There was Pink, who seemed chatty, Yellow, who seemed to be in a state of perpetual annoyance with something, and Purple, who was either really quiet or just very involved in their work. The last two, Cyan and White, seemed laid back but friendly enough. After they’d left the communications room, Red had gone on a bit of a tangent about not neglecting work, and that Cyan and White had better have finished their tasks before playing card games. Black let them talk- Red seemed like someone who wouldn’t appreciate being interrupted. Plus, it wasn’t like Black had anything else to say on the topic. </p><p>	“And here’s weapons. That’s the last of the rooms, besides the locker room and bunkrooms, but I’m sure you’ve already seen those.” Red’s voice broke into Black’s thoughts. </p><p>	Black glanced around the room. It wasn’t much different from the rest of the ship- same bland white walls, same fluorescent lighting. They followed Red back to the cafeteria, where they were assigned their task for the day. “Just one today,” Red had told them, “but don’t get used to such a light workload.” Black nodded. They were used to having a fair amount of work, and Red had likely only given them one task for their first day just in case the ship got behind on scheduling.</p><p>	Black headed to the electrical room after looking over their task- to check the wiring. It was just busy work, but Black didn’t mind if it meant not having to endure any more of Red’s rambling.</p><p>	The electrical room’s lights were off, which Black found strange. The buzzing and humming of machinery surrounded them as they stepped into the room and used the panel on the wall to turn on the lights. </p><p>	<i>Creepy.</i> Black shook off their paranoia and headed for the nearest panel on the wall. Just as they reached it, however, someone jumped out from behind a stack of equipment.</p><p>	“Gotcha!” White exclaimed, and Black jumped back in surprise, a yelp escaping them. White’s face changed from playful to horrified as they realized who they’d startled.</p><p>	“Sorry! Oh crap, I thought you were Cyan,” White stammered as Black composed themself. “We-we were playing hide and seek, and I didn’t expect anyone else to have tasks in this room…”</p><p>	“It’s okay,” Black managed as the other crewmate scurried out of the room. They couldn’t tell if they were more annoyed, or relieved that it had just been White being an idiot. <i>Whatever</i>, they thought, brushing it off as they began their task.</p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	The cafeteria was nearly empty as White and Cyan retrieved their food from the dispenser and headed to the middle table, where Orange already sat. Bob was obediently parked under the bench attached to the table, though it chirped as White and Cyan sat down.</p><p>	“So, one more pick-up, then we’re off to Polus, aye?” Orange asked, and White nodded, recalling Red’s announcement during breakfast. “How’s it going, firsty?” They directed the question to Cyan, who responded enthusiastically.</p><p>	“Really well! It’s more fun than I’d imagined.” Cyan grinned. “The way they talked about missions in Academy, it felt like we were just gonna be constantly working…” They continued chatting to Orange while a new arrival to the cafeteria caught White’s attention. </p><p>	<i>Black.</i> </p><p>	White averted their gaze, pretending to be especially focused on winding their spaghetti noodles around their fork. </p><p>	“White, you good? You’re quiet today,” Orange noted, and White merely nodded and forced a hopefully-not-too anxious smile onto their face.</p><p>	“White embarrassed themselves in front of Black in Electrical,” Cyan blabbed, and White shushed them hurriedly, noticing Black heading towards their table. Orange merely nodded, a knowing yet amused look in their eye. </p><p>	White tried to avoid looking at Black as they sat down. <i>They must hate me… At least I have Cyan… </i> </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black grabbed their tray of food from the dispenser and approached the crewmates at the table. </p><p>	“Hey Black!” Orange greeted. They appeared to have already finished their food, seeing as they were unwrapping a bar of chocolate. </p><p>	Black nodded to them in greeting, then looked to Cyan and White. The latter was staring down into their bowl as they fiddled with their fork. <i>Are they avoiding me?</i></p><p>	“How’re you adjusting to the ship?” Orange inquired, and Black shrugged in response.</p><p>	“It’s okay,” they said, though worry was beginning to prick their brain. <i>Does White hate me all the sudden? Oh, great, my first day and already I’m making enemies.</i> </p><p>	A moment later, Pink joined the table and immediately started making small talk with Orange and Cyan, leaving Black to study White in peace. They seemed to be quite focused on eating their noodles, and Black caught their eye once, though the eye contact was immediately broken by White purposefully glancing away.</p><p>	<i>Yeah, they definitely hate me…</i></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Awkward...</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Tensions rise between Black and White due to each of them being a general awkward mess.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>White wasn’t sure why they’d felt so awkward around Black, but some part of them told them talking to Black would only result in a worse situation somehow. </p><p>	“Are you seriously avoiding them?” Cyan asked as they headed to the communications room, and White didn’t respond. They weren’t really sure. </p><p>	Cyan just sighed. “Look at them, they’re too shy to call you out to anyone. You’re not going to get in trouble with Red or something, plus we were just playing a game. Orange would understand.”</p><p>	“It’s not that,” White finally said. “It’s… I just don’t want someone I just met to hate me, you know?” They thought back to a previous mission they’d been on, when their luggage had spilled open during takeoff and exposed everything they’d packed to the entire crew. They’d been teased for days about it afterwards, and belittled by the crew until the mission ended. It hadn’t been a fun time. </p><p>	“They aren’t going to <i>hate</i> you. And if they are, they’re being shallow and you shouldn’t try to impress them.” Cyan’s advice was surprisingly mature. </p><p>	“...You’re right,” White realized. “Maybe if I talk to them again, they’ll realize I’m not a huge dunce.” </p><p>	“That’s the spirit!” Cyan clapped them on the back. </p><p>	“You know what, I’m going to talk to them right now.” White took a deep breath and started marching in the direction of the electrical room. </p><p>	“Good luck!” Cyan called after them. </p><p>	White poked their head through the doorway of the electrical room. They were relieved to see Black already there, back towards White as they carefully compared an arrangement of wires to a picture on their tablet.</p><p>	“Hi, Black!” White greeted them, and Black whirled around, relaxing once they realized it was just White. </p><p>	“Oh, hey.” Their words were casual, but something about their tone seemed almost… harsh? White wondered if it had been a bad idea to visit them. </p><p>	“What’re you doing?” White asked, trying to make small talk. </p><p>	Black shrugged. “Just making sure these wires are organized correctly.” They made a halfhearted motion towards the open panel on the wall that they’d been inspecting. </p><p>	“Neat!” White didn’t know what else to say. They’d wanted to make sure Black wasn’t harboring any annoyance towards them, but they didn’t want to make things awkward between them. “Do you play cards?” </p><p>	“Depends. I know a few games.” </p><p>	“Would you like to-,” White was about to invite them to play cards when Red interrupted them both. </p><p>	“Are your tasks done yet?” Red sounded more annoyed than usual. <i>What’s ruffled their suit?</i></p><p>	“Uh…” White shook their head. “Not yet, but I’ve only got one left to do-,”</p><p>	“How about yours, Black?” Red looked to Black, who had tensed up.</p><p>	“No…” Black mumbled. </p><p>	“Then why are you two standing around and chatting?” Red didn’t give either of them a chance to reply before launching into a lecture on prioritizing work and not being lazy, how Yellow already disappointed them today, and now both Black and White were content to sit around talking instead of working. They stomped off once they were done, and White winced. </p><p>	“You should go.” Black’s voice had an edge to it, and White cast them an apologetic glance before hurrying out of the electrical room. </p><p>	“How’d it go?” Cyan asked as White returned to the communications room. They were perched on the communications desk, eagerly awaiting White’s reply.</p><p>	“Fucking awful. Red came in and went full lecture mode. If Black didn’t hate me before, they do now.” White sighed as they took a seat at the chair in front of the communications desk. </p><p>	“That sucks.” Cyan looked sympathetic. </p><p>	“What <i>happened</i>?” Cyan and White looked up to see Pink standing in the doorway. </p><p>	“Red barged into Admin looking more pissed than usual,” Pink continued. “Then they started ranting to Orange about new crewmates not doing their jobs…” </p><p>	“Er… White, you wanna explain?” Cyan looked to White, who took a deep breath before speaking. </p><p>	“...Well, I wanted to make up with Black for accidentally scaring them earlier, so I went to talk to them while they were doing their tasks. But Red came in and lectured us for not finishing our tasks before taking a break. Oh, and they mentioned Yellow, so maybe they’re mad at them too…” White sank deeper into their chair. “Black definitely still hates me now.”</p><p>	“Chill out, it’s only, like, the first half day you two’ve known each other,” Pink reassured them. “Things will get better.”</p><p>	Things did not get better. </p><p>	That very evening, during the evening meal, White threw up their hands as they told a story, and accidentally smacked Black’s tray, which tipped and spilled chicken casserole all over the other crewmate’s suit. In White’s defense, MIRA’s chicken casserole was awful and they couldn’t figure why anyone would actually eat it when it came up on the menu, but of course they didn’t <i>say</i> that. All they could do was sit in shock as Black <i>glared</i> at them, and ran off to clean their suit. </p><p>	<i>I didn’t even say sorry,</i> White realized as Pink and Yellow laughed at them, and Cyan just awkwardly stared. </p><p>	“You really should try to apologize to them,” Cyan suggested as White was cleaning up the mess on the floor. </p><p>	“I don’t know…” White let their voice trail off. They did want to apologize to Black, but how could they? There were too many ways they could screw up, and make Black hate them even more. </p><p>	“At least try,” Pink encouraged, handing White another rag to wipe up the last of the sauce from the tile. </p><p>	“Not like you can make it much worse,” Yellow said. “Knowing you, you might find a way, though.” Yellow, too, seemed to be in a much worse mood than usual. It didn’t stop their words from stinging.</p><p>	White’s face burned. Of course Yellow thought they were just a clumsy idiot, now that they’d messed up any chance of becoming friends with Black. They bit back a retort as they scooped up the rags they’d been using to clean the floor and headed for the locker room. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★<br/>	“God, they’re such a fucking <i>idiot</i>,” Black muttered to themself as they carried their suit to the washer. They’d changed out of the stained suit and into their sleepwear, not that they particularly wanted to so early. </p><p>	They tossed the clothes into the washer and were about to slam the lid shut when a familiar voice exclaimed, “Wait!”</p><p>	Black turned to see who it was, and couldn’t stop a scowl from spreading across their face. White hurried over with some rags and tossed them into the washer.</p><p>	“Thanks,” White said. Black didn’t reply as they closed the washer and started a rinse cycle. </p><p>	“By the way… I’m sorry,” White said quickly. Black raised an eyebrow as they continued. </p><p>	“Sorry for everything, I know I kinda messed up…” White’s voice trailed off, and Black bit their lip. <i>How do I respond?</i> They were still worried that if they opened their mouth, they’d say something they’d regret. At least White didn’t seem to hate them, though Black was unsure if the other’s apology was genuine or not. </p><p>	“...It’s fine,” Black mumbled, which seemed to satisfy White. </p><p>	“Thanks for understanding!” White called over their shoulder as they hurried out of the locker room. Black watched them for a moment, then turned to head back to their bunkroom. </p><p>	<i>What an odd person.</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	The next day, White didn’t see Black at breakfast. </p><p>	“Where are they?” They asked Orange, who shrugged and said they probably just woke up early. </p><p>	“Mars’ day-night cycle is a few hours ahead of the Skeld’s,” Orange reasoned. “Black’s probably used to waking up earlier.” </p><p>	White nodded. It made sense, though they couldn't shake the worry that Black might just be avoiding them. </p><p>	“Why’re you so concerned about where Black is?” Yellow asked through a mouthful of cereal. “You interested in them or something?” Their words were said with a hint of amusement, which annoyed White for a reason they couldn’t quite place. </p><p>	“No… Just used to having the whole crew here, I guess,” White responded, trying to keep the bite out of their voice. </p><p>	They bumped into Black a few hours later, on their way to lunch. </p><p>	“Hi…” White said cautiously. Black nodded a greeting, and the two didn’t speak to each other as they continued into the cafeteria. The next few days went the same, with both of them generally avoiding each other. White didn’t mind avoiding Black- they’d gotten off on the wrong foot, clearly, and maybe Black just needed some time. Black seemed like a quiet person anyways, and White wouldn’t’ve been able to figure out what to talk to them about even if they’d put the effort into starting a conversation. </p><p>	<i>I don’t need to talk to them,</i> they told themself. Maybe if they kept saying it, it would come true.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. New Arrivals</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Brown, Blue and Green have their first meal with the rest of the ship. Black doesn't particularly like their new roommate. Meanwhile, White and Cyan invite Pink and Orange over to hang out during the night.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>On the fourth day after Black arrived, the ship stopped at a base on another planet to pick up the last three members of the crew. Black watched them mingle with the crew during lunch, as there wasn’t really anything better to do. </p><p>	“So, what’s the mission?” Brown, the loudest of the new arrivals, asked Red. Brown seemed to be one of the more laid-back crewmates, and Black wondered if they’d get along with White. </p><p>	Red explained to them what the crewmates were to do on Polus, and Brown raised an eyebrow upon hearing what had happened to the Polus base.</p><p>	“Hope we don’t all die,” they said after Red finished explaining. </p><p>	“That would be nice,” Blue, the second new arrival, said with a bit of a laugh. They sat next to Green, whom they seemed to be romantically involved with considering the pair’s affectionate nature towards each other. Green said nothing, but smiled when their partner spoke. </p><p>	“So, y’all know each other?” Orange gestured with their fork at Brown, Blue and Green. </p><p>	“More or less,” Blue said with a shrug. “Green and I met Brown on our last mission.”</p><p>	“I’m your child now.” Brown slurped up a noodle.</p><p>	“More like our lazy housecat,” Green corrected playfully. Brown just laughed. </p><p>	“Remember, there is to be no <i>lazing</i> about this ship until you get your tasks done,” Red reminded, and the others nodded and muttered their understanding before Red could launch into a lecture on the importance of work. </p><p>	“MIRA really should stop starting colonies on imposter-filled planets,” Pink said as they ran a brush through their hair. “It’s dangerous to the colonists, plus if the colony grows, it’ll be even more dangerous as there’ll be more targets for imposters to infect.”</p><p>	“I’m sure MIRA has their reasons,” Cyan reasoned.</p><p>	“Polus <i>was</i> a good research planet,” Green noted. “Plus, due to Amendment T0098, they don’t transport imposter specimens any more, so they’ve pretty much got to have some kind of base on the planet.”</p><p>	“They didn’t need to set up whole families there, though. It’s <i>unnecessary.</i> They’re endangering people.” Pink’s voice was firm.</p><p>	“True. I can’t imagine growing up on another planet, where alien species could hurt my family.” White picked at the sleeve of their suit anxiously. “I’m glad I grew up on Earth.”</p><p>	“Not all colonies are dangerous,” Blue countered. </p><p>	“I wish I’d grown up on a colony,” Green said, their voice soft as they turned to Blue. “With you.” Blue blushed. </p><p>	<i>Ew.</i> Black tuned out their weird mushiness. They’d never dated anyone, though they’d had a few crushes they’d never really acted on them. It was weird to see others display their very obvious PDA, though something pricked at Black’s heart as they watched Blue and Green lean closer into one another. <i>Jealousy?</i>, questioned some annoying voice in the back of their mind. Black pushed the thought away as they finished their lunch and headed to the electrical room. They had tasks to do, after all. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“I wonder what we’ll find on Polus,” White wondered aloud. They sat on the floor of the bunkroom they shared with Cyan. Cyan and Pink had joined them, the three of them intending to have a sleepover of sorts. </p><p>	“Hopefully not everyone’s died.” Pink clutched their pillow to their chest. “It’s so sad to think of whole communities being wiped out…” </p><p>	“The Polus colony was pretty new, wasn’t it?” Cyan asked, and the others shrugged. White hadn’t ever been near Polus, and only knew a bit about it from history lessons at MIRA Academy. They did know it was apparently one of the planets that imposters lived on, which made it more dangerous than sites for colonies. </p><p>	“Howdy, crew!” Orange opened the door and poked their head in. “Mind if I join?” </p><p>	“Hm, an authority figure. You aren’t going to try to regulate us, are you?” White plastered a playful smile across their cheeks. </p><p>	“I think if someone was going to try to regulate you, it would be the <i>Policy Specialist</i>, wouldn’t it?” Orange glanced to Cyan, who held up their hands in an “I’m innocent” gesture. “Plus, I brought chocolate!” Orange held up a bag of foil wrapped sweets. </p><p>	“Welcome to the party, then!” White grinned and beckoned them in. </p><p>	“Close the door behind you,” Pink said with a wave of their hand. </p><p>	Orange swiped at the panel, then joined the others on the floor, passing the bag of chocolates to Pink. </p><p>	“Where’s Bob?” White inquired. </p><p>	“Charging. Even robotic children need to sleep.”</p><p>	“Heh.” Pink passed the bag of chocolate to White. “Anyways… White, how’re things with Black?” </p><p>	“Wha- No better?” White couldn’t keep the confusion out of their voice as they fished a chocolate out of the bag. “Why?” </p><p>	The others exchanged looks White couldn’t quite read. </p><p>	“<i>What?</i>” White asked again, and Orange spoke up. </p><p>	“Oh, it’s just funny how you two dance around each other.” Amusement lilted their tone.</p><p>	“We do <i>not!</i>” White waved the chocolate bag in the air, then handed it to Cyan, who was making a grabby motion with their hands. </p><p>	“You do, though… Just like the protag of this novel I’ve been reading!” Cyan discarded the chocolate bag on a pillow next to them in favor of rooting through their suitcase. They pulled out a thin novel with a MIRA logo in the corner of the cover. “<i>Sweetness Blooms Starside!</i>”</p><p>	“Propagandaaaa,” Orange accused, their face crinkled up. “I’m disappointed. I expected better of you, Cyan.” </p><p>	“<i>What?</i> My Policy Histories teacher gave it to me. I think it’s cute!” Cyan clutched their book defensively. </p><p>	Orange merely sighed. “You firsties are all the same… You’re gonna turn out like Red, I can tell.” Cyan crinkled up their face at Orange’s prediction. </p><p>	“Back to Black and White,” Pink broke in. “White, are you <i>sure</i> you’re not… You know…” They raised an eyebrow.</p><p>	“Okay. Fine. I’m avoiding them. But every time I go near them, things get weird!” White exclaimed. “I’m sure they hate me now.” </p><p>	“<i>Enemies to lovers!</i>” Cyan squealed, nearly falling over. </p><p>	“<i>No!</i>” White buried their face in a pillow. <i>How did I end up with such a nosy crew?</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black was not pleased with their new roommate. </p><p>	Brown had immediately dumped a suitcase on the floor of the bunkroom they were meant to share with Black, which was admittedly not a very large room. The small size of the room just made the clutter all the harder to avoid. </p><p>	And now, as Black was trying to focus on folding a square piece of paper into a little crane(Origami was good stress relief), Brown kept <i>pestering</i> them, asking them constant questions. It was a nuisance. On all the missions Black had been on before, their bunkmates had at the very least respected their personal time. </p><p>	<i>First White and now you!</i></p><p>	“So, what do you think about the others?” Brown piped up for the fifth time in five minutes. They were perched on their bed, looking expectantly at Black. </p><p>	Black sighed. They would have to interact with their bunkmate sooner or later. <i>I just wish they wouldn’t invade my alone time, though.</i></p><p>	“I don’t really know. What do you think of them?” They asked in a tone they hoped didn’t betray their annoyance. </p><p>	“Well, I did just meet most of them, besides Green and Blue, but you know that…” Brown jabbered on about the others as Black turned back to their folding. A familiar name caught their attention.</p><p>	“...White seems kind of, I don’t know, they act like a firsty, you know?” Brown was saying. </p><p>	“They don’t.” Black broke in for some reason they didn’t really know. </p><p>	Brown gave them a quizzical look. “Why, what do you think of them?” </p><p>	Black paused. They <i>didn’t</i> know what they thought of White. White was a bit annoying, like Brown, but differently somehow. They were always <i>there</i>, so easy to notice, and Black didn’t know <i>why</i>. </p><p>	“I… I don’t know, they’re just… Ah, they’re kind of annoying, but they aren’t <i>stupid</i>, or…” Black wasn’t sure why they were stumbling over their words so much. “They’re… They’re good intentioned, but they’re kind of infuriating at the same-,”</p><p>	“Blaaack.” Black looked back to Brown, who was now smiling mischievously. “Do you have <i>feelings</i> for White?” </p><p>	“No!” Black exclaimed, louder than they meant to. </p><p>	“Mhmm.” Brown nodded but maintained their mischievous smile. Black just sighed. <i>If anyone’s acting like a firsty on this crew, it’s you!</i></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hehe.. Did you catch the reference to my previous fic? </p><p>Also, yes, Orange is addicted to chocolate.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. The Trip to Polus</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A fluffy chapter about the crew's activities on the trip to Polus.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The trip to Polus continued without much conflict. At White’s request, Cyan and Pink stopped teasing them about Black, though Brown would sometimes poke their head into Communications and ask how Black was purely to annoy White. White continued to not really interact with Black, which was easy considering the other crewmate’s generally quiet nature. </p><p>	The day before they were due to arrive on Polus, Orange announced that they’d be hosting a game night of sorts in the cafeteria, and everyone was welcome to join. </p><p>	“Remember to keep the games under control,” Red reminded, and everyone nodded as to not earn a lecture. </p><p>	The first few games were pretty tame, the gathered crewmates just played a few card games. White was glad to show off their shuffling skills. Gradually, a few of them began to leave- first Purple headed back to Medbay, which nobody found surprising. <i>Probably going to work,</i> White thought. Then Blue and Green headed to the bunkrooms to “get to bed early”(Probably a lie, but nobody was going to call them out for it). Red left shortly after, citing their responsibility as a captain to get a reasonable amount of sleep or something. Black snuck out in the middle of a game, and nobody said anything to them though everyone definitely noticed. </p><p>	“This is getting boring,” Yellow said, throwing down their cards after what had to be the fifteenth round of cards they’d played. </p><p>	“I know some other games,” White offered, and they were about to list off a few other card games when Pink broke in, a mischievous smile on their face. </p><p>	“We should play Kiss, Marry, Kill.”</p><p>	“<i>Yes.</i>” Cyan agreed, leaning forward on the cafeteria table. </p><p>	White agreed, mostly because Pink and Yellow had gotten rather <i>close</i> in the 5 weeks the Skeld had been en route to Polus, and they were curious if either of them would make a move. </p><p>	“Who’s first?” Brown asked, and the others shrugged. </p><p>	“You ask someone,” Orange encouraged them. </p><p>	“Okay, hmm…” Brown’s gaze flitted around the table, probably trying to see which option would cause the most chaos. “Yellow.” Yellow rolled their eyes. “Orange, Pink, and Purple.” </p><p>	“Uhm.” Yellow considered their options while the others waited excitedly. White could already tell how this was going to go. “Orange, I would kiss you, but like on the cheek or hand or something.” </p><p>	“Aww.” Orange raised a hand to their heart. “I’m flattered.” </p><p>	“Pink would be the easiest to marry, since… we already share a bunkroom, y’know,” Yellow waved their hand dismissively, not really looking at Pink, who was grinning. </p><p>	“And they were bunkmates,” Cyan murmured into White’s ear. White couldn’t hold in a snicker, and caught a glare from Yellow. </p><p>	“<i>And they were bunkmates</i>,” Brown echoed, and Yellow looked like they were one more remark away from hurling Brown out the airlock. </p><p>	“Anyways… That just leaves Purple, I guess. I wouldn’t <i>want</i> to kill them, but it’s kind of the only option.” Yellow folded their hands on the table. “My turn to pick someone.” They immediately looked to White. “White, your options are Black, Cyan, and Brown.” </p><p>	“Tea,” Cyan whispered.</p><p>	White took a moment to think. <i>I can’t tell them I’d want to kiss or marry Black, they’d start shipping us or something… Would I want to kiss Black though?</i> White pushed the thought from their mind. “Fine. I would… Marry Cyan, probably to dodge taxes. I would kiss Brown, because it would shut them up for two seconds at least-,” </p><p>	“What? This is bullying,” Brown accused. </p><p>	“You wouldn’t kill Black, we can’t just kill anyone who isn’t here,” Pink objected. </p><p>	“White’s just trying to cover up the fact that they would rather marry <i>and</i> kiss Black,” Brown countered, and White nearly kicked them under the table. <i>Where do they get these ideas?</i></p><p>	“Yeah, White, we’re being <i>honest</i> here,” Yellow laughed. </p><p>	“Now, now.” Orange’s voice took on a ‘concerned authority figure’ tone. “No teasing. I’m not babysitting a bunch of children.” </p><p>	“Yeah, lay off, Brown,” Cyan said, throwing a balled-up piece of paper at them. It flew over Brown’s shoulder, and Brown just laughed at them in response. </p><p>	“Wait, we can’t just keep killing people who aren’t here,” Pink said. </p><p>	“Fine, new rule,” Orange suggested. “Everyone you choose has to be at this table, right now.” </p><p>	The others agreed to it, and White continued, asking Brown out of Orange, Yellow and Cyan who they’d kiss, marry and kill. </p><p>	“Well, <i>obviously</i> I’m killing Cyan, since they just <i>assaulted</i> me,” Brown said with a pointed look at Cyan. </p><p>	“<i>Nearly</i> assaulted you,” Cyan corrected. “With a piece of paper. And I won’t hesitate to throw another one.”</p><p>	“I’ll throw paper at Brown, too,” White added. “They deserve it.”</p><p>	“Wow. This is workplace harassment. I’m gonna inform MIRA of your sins.” Brown’s sarcasm was met with laughter. </p><p>	The games continued long into the night, until Orange, who had definitely eaten at least ten pieces of chocolate since they started, insisted everyone go to bed. “We’ve got a long day ahead of us,” they warned.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>{White's Personal Journal}</p><p>33 Days After Takeoff</p><p>Would I want to kiss Black? No way. Stop thinking about it. They're just another crewmate. Someone I just kind of see every day. And maybe avoid a bit more than I do the others, but I don't see how that changes anything. <br/>I've decided to never play Kiss, Marry, Kill with this bunch again. Ever.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Morning Meeting</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The group lands on Polus, and White's friends seem to be working harder than ever to get them and Black together.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Black was awoken by Red, who banged on their door and yelled at them to wake up. Black glanced at their tablet to find that there was a good half hour until they were scheduled to land on Polus.</p><p>	Brown groaned loudly after Red had left.</p><p>	“Do we <i>really</i> have to wake up?” </p><p>	Black didn’t respond to them. Brown knew the answer, even if they were content to ignore it and fall back asleep. <i>Whatever.</i> Black didn’t really care to wake them up. <i>Let them get yelled at by Red for laziness.</i></p><p>	Black grabbed their suit and underclothes and went out into the locker room. Thankfully, one of the shower cubes was open, and Black stepped into it to change. <i>Guess the others are still waking up.</i> </p><p>	Exiting the shower cube just a bit too hastily, they bumped into White, who was clearly still waking up. White’s dark, curly hair was unbrushed, and they stifled a yawn as they excused themself and brushed past Black to enter the now-vacant shower cube. </p><p>	For a moment, Black just stood there. That was the most White had spoken to them practically since the first day Black had entered the ship. </p><p>	<i>Are they just tired? Or have they decided to stop ignoring me?</i> </p><p>	Black shook their head to clear it and headed to their bunkroom, where Brown was still in their bunk. Black ignored them as they dumped their dirty sleepwear into the bag they’d been using as a laundry bag and headed out to the cafeteria. </p><p>	Red and Orange were already there, which wasn’t surprising, along with Green and Blue, who were practically sitting on each other’s laps. Black grabbed their breakfast and took a seat not too far from Red and Orange, listening in to the captain and co-captain’s conversation. </p><p>	“Based on the reports, whatever happened… It wasn’t good,” Red said. Orange nodded. </p><p>	“I read the transcripts, or, as much as I had access to… We’re going to want to arm everyone who’s going out. It’s more than likely there’s a few imposters still roaming about.” Orange’s tone was more serious than usual. </p><p>	Purple joined them at the table, holding a bowl of cereal, and Red and Orange quieted down. Black looked around to see that most of the others were emerging from the locker room- Pink, Yellow and Brown were gathered by the food dispenser, and Cyan and White were heading over to them. </p><p>	Black finished the dried fruits they’d gotten from the food dispenser just as Red called all of them to attention. Immediately, Pink, Yellow, Brown and Cyan practically ran to the table, and White hurried after them, confused. Red waited for the other crewmates to find their seats. </p><p>	White sat down next to Black, awkwardly avoiding their eyes as usual. Looking around the table, Black noticed there was literally no other place for them to sit, and Cyan and Pink were (badly) hiding grins as they stole glances at White and Black. Black just turned to Red, waiting for them to speak. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	White shifted awkwardly. They were sitting between Yellow and Black, not that they <i>wanted</i> to be sitting near Black, but it was the only seat left. The middle cafeteria table, where the crewmates were presently gathered, only had just enough space for all of them to fit, and of course Cyan, Pink, Yellow and Brown <i>had</i> to force White to sit next to the one person they would have avoided. </p><p>	They didn’t <i>dislike</i> Black, but there was something about them that made White so abnormally self-conscious. White tried to force themself to pay attention to Red, who had just begun speaking, but they couldn't help themself. They stole a glance at Black. The other crewmate was watching Red, a faint smile on their face. Heat rose to White's cheeks when they realized they were almost close enough to feel Black's body heat. </p><p>
  <i>I wonder if I'd be able to if we weren't wearing these suits...</i>
</p><p>	“As you all know, we’ve just arrived on Polus. Now, it’s of the utmost importance that we consider your safety before we allow <i>anyone</i> to leave the ship, so we need to take a few precautions before we leave…” Red jabbered on about policy and protocol and how there were definitely still “threats” present in the remains of the Polus settlement. The crewmates around the table were no doubt trying to look awake, but that was difficult to do at 07:00 Skeld time, especially after having gone to sleep after 24:00 the night before. White allowed themself another glance at Black, who was also quite clearly making an effort to look alert. Their hands were folded on the table, and they were still listening to Red continue the safety spiel. </p><p>	“Cyan, do you have anything to add on protocol?” Red asked after what had to be at least five minutes of them talking nonstop about what not to do. </p><p>	Cyan shook their head. “No, I think you’ve covered all the bases, Captain.” They saluted, which White normally would have laughed at had they not been both sleep deprived and squished between two people. </p><p>	“Great. Now, we need to come up with a plan on who needs to go where…” Red continued. “First of all, you all should have maps of the Polus complex since I sent them to you last night.” </p><p>	Nods rippled around the table as the crewmates pulled up the map of the Polus colony. It was not a very large colony at all- in fact, it was little more than a glorified research base. There were the typical research and maintenance buildings, along with a housing complex and a community center. </p><p>	“I’d like to investigate the complex’s labs.” Purple spoke up for the first time in what had to have been a week. They didn’t talk very often, as White had noticed, they were usually buried in their work. </p><p>	Red nodded. “I was planning to send you all off based on specialty. I’ll revise the list of partners and areas to cover. Anyone else have any specific place they’d like to be?” Red waited a moment for any other responses, then continued. “Okay. I’ll call you all back here in an hour. Until then, you’re all free to do whatever you need to wake yourselves up.” </p><p>	With a wave of their hand, they dismissed the group. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black hurried away from the table. That entire meeting had been so unnecessarily stressful, with the uncomfortable situation of being seated next to White only amplified by the fact that it felt like half the table was observing them. After depositing their dishes in the sink, they turned to see White shove Cyan, who was laughing too hard to catch themselves, and Green just shaking their head as Red yelled something about workplace safety. Black felt a sudden sense of <i>longing</i>, for some reason they couldn’t quite place. </p><p>	<i>Do I want to be a part of their group?</i>, they asked themself, as they watched White, Cyan, Pink and Brown playfully bicker while Yellow rolled their eyes at them. </p><p>	<i>Maybe you want to be closer to White</i>, murmured the little voice in their head that existed only to annoy them, and Black just sighed and walked away. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“You guys did that on purpose, didn’t you?” White accused, though they were mostly pointing at Cyan and Yellow, who seemed to be very insistent on shoving White and Black together at every possible opportunity. </p><p>	Yellow stayed quiet, though their eyes betrayed them, crinkled with amusement. </p><p>	“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Cyan said with a smirk. “You looked very eager to sit with your crush, though.” </p><p>	White shoved them. “I was <i>not!</i> You guys took up all the available seats!”</p><p>	“Hey! No violence! This is a safe workplace,” Red called. </p><p>	“Mhmm. Sure we did.” Pink was standing next to Yellow, looking almost like a mirror image of them. The two had the same posture- one hand on their hip as they gazed at White. </p><p>	“Why don’t you ever tease those two?” White asked Cyan, who was picking themself up off the floor. </p><p>	Cyan shrugged. “They’re not as fun.” </p><p>	“They’re <i>obvious</i>,” Brown put in. “You can see them fawning over each other and microobsessing over their appearances together.”</p><p>	The corners of Yellow’s mouth turned down ever so slightly as they retorted. “We do <i>not</i> obsess over our appearances.” They turned to Pink. “Right?” </p><p>	“Um.” Pink had their brush out and had been running it through their hair. White took the opportunity to glance at where Black had been, wondering if they were hearing the exchange. To their relief, Black was gone from the room, probably having wandered off somewhere to go fold their origami. White had seen a few of their creations, and they had to admit, Black was talented. </p><p>	White was yanked from their thoughts by Brown’s laughter. </p><p>	“Nice timing,” Yellow muttered to Pink, who was looking quite embarrassed. </p><p>	“O<i>kay</i>, enough about them.” Cyan flapped a hand at Yellow and Pink. “We need to try harder to get White and Black together.”</p><p>	“I’m right here, you know.” White sighed as Cyan just laughed. In a weird way, they felt almost grateful for their friend. Yet some part of them was still too anxious to even <i>talk</i> to Black. Plus, talking to Black would definitely result in Cyan giving them that I-knew-it grin, which White wanted to smack right off their face. </p><p>	<i>Why am I making excuses? Do I have a crush on Black? Cyan obviously thinks so, but it’s Cyan, the very same Cyan who confessed to putting their ice cream in the microwave on accident multiple times...</i></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>{Yellow's Personal Journal}</p><p>34 Days After Takeoff</p><p>I do <i>not</i> obsess over my appearance. And neither does Pink. Maybe we're just looking nice for each other. White should probably follow our example. Maybe if they did, they wouldn't <i>still</i> barely be talking to Black.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. The Colony</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>It turns out not every inhabitant of the Polus colony was dead...</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As promised, Red gathered them all back at the cafeteria an hour after the disbandment of the first meeting. They read off a list of partner groups and assignments. Black was paired with Purple, and they couldn’t help but feel a prick of disappointment. </p><p>	<i>Maybe I did want to be White’s partner…</i></p><p>	White didn’t have a partner anyways, they were staying back to make sure the ship’s communications system stayed up while everyone was out. Well, almost everyone. Red and Orange had also opted to stay back, so they’d be reachable in case of any emergencies. </p><p>	After receiving their assignments, the crewmates that were to leave the ship were led to the weapons room, where Green, their weapons specialist, gave each of them a pistol and basic instructions on how to use it. Black carefully tucked the pistol into one of the pockets on their suit. They hoped they wouldn’t encounter any imposters, but they weren’t going to take any chances. </p><p>	Red restated some of the things they’d already told everyone as they waited in the storage room to leave via the airlock. They hadn’t used the airlock yet; it was separate from the door to the launchroom they’d entered with and the garbage chute, which was far too small to fit a crewmate anyways. Finally, Red opened the airlock doors. </p><p>	Polus was a snowy planet. Thankfully, it wasn’t snowing as Black stepped outside, though the launchpad the Skeld had landed on was covered in at least a foot of snow. </p><p>	<i>Glad I didn’t grow up on such a snowy colony.</i> Black wondered how much time it took just to clear all the snow from the walkways of Polus every day. </p><p>	They trudged through the snow after Purple, who seemed to know what they were doing. As they walked, Black couldn’t help but gape at the ruins. Rubble was scattered across the snow, along with trails of blood, and, occasionally, body parts. The buildings weren’t in any decent shape, either- There were wide holes in walls, and shattered windows. Black realized they were approaching a building that looked as if it had <i>exploded</i>- almost half of it was little more than a blackened shell, and chunks of concrete and plaster surrounded it. The metal that might have once been the framework for this building was twisted and bent. </p><p>	Purple stepped through the space that a wall must have been once, their boot connecting solidly with what was left of a cracked concrete floor. If they were unnerved by the remains of the settlement, they didn’t show it as they strutted into the building. <br/>	Black followed them, unsure of what to do. Purple hadn’t said a single thing to them since they’d left the Skeld, and Black got the feeling that they weren’t one for conversation. Under normal circumstances, Black would’ve been fine with that, but this building was far too creepy to wander about in silence. </p><p>	Purple led Black further into a building- down a corridor, through a room filled with splintered furniture, all without speaking. The only sounds were the pair’s eerily echoing footsteps and the distant howl of the surely frigid winds of Polus. <br/>	Then, a door slammed from somewhere they couldn’t place. </p><p>	“What was that?” Purple hissed, whirling around. </p><p>	Black glanced wildly in every direction, trying to figure out where the noise had come from. “I-I don’t know,” they managed. </p><p>	“Nobody’s supposed to be in this area,” Purple responded, then jerked their head to the side, motioning for Black to be quiet and listen. Black tilted their head to the side as well, and, though hearing was harder through their helmet, they became aware of rapid footsteps coming in their direction. </p><p>	Both Black and Purple drew their guns, pointing them at the door where the footsteps seemed to originate from beyond. Black wasn’t even sure that they could hear the footsteps any more, or if the strangely rhythmic noise they were hearing was the pounding of their own heart. But a moment later, someone in a gray suit burst through the door. </p><p>	“Freeze!” Purple yelled, keeping their gun trained on the newcomer. </p><p>	The gray suited person froze, raising their hands into the air. </p><p>	“I’m not an imposter!” They exclaimed, and Black could see that they were shaking. “I- I hid from them, they’re all gone now, Red blew them up!” </p><p>	Purple didn’t waver. “Who are you, and what happened?” </p><p>	“I-I’m Gray. I was a researcher, and I didn’t have any family here yet when the imposters attacked… They started picking people off, and I got scared and hid… Red told me they were going to blow up everyone else, and they never came back…” Gray’s voice cracked, and they raised their hands to their helmet and rested them there. </p><p>	“We’ll take you back to our ship. If you’re an imposter, our scanner will tell me.” Purple lowered their gun and motioned for Gray to approach. “Are there any others with you?”</p><p>	“Thank you,” Gray choked out. “I don’t think anyone else is alive… There could be some hiding that I don’t know about, though…” </p><p>	“Black. Lead us back to the ship,” Purple said, and Black nodded, pulling up the map on their tablet. </p><p>	They headed back the way they’d come, leading Purple and Gray through the hall they’d come from. Nearly tripping on a dent in the concrete, Black double-checked that they were heading in the right direction before continuing down the hall. </p><p>	A sudden yell made Black spin around to face Purple and Gray. For a moment they stood in shock. Gray had knocked Purple down, and sat on the crewmate, their chest suddenly <i>gaping</i> open. The second maw was about to strike a struggling Purple when Black drew their gun and fired, managing to catch Gray in the back. The imposter jerked up enough for Purple to scramble back against the wall, drawing their own gun and firing at Gray, who staggered backwards, screaming out of both of their mouths. Its shriek was inhuman, the combination of two different voices, interspersed with Purple and Black’s gunfire. Then, there was a flash, and Black was knocked back against a wall. Everything went dark. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“I must have the most boring job ever,” White complained to Orange, who had offered to stay with them in the communication room. “I don’t even get to leave the ship, I’m just… Here.” They gestured to the drab walls of the communication room. </p><p>	“You’ll get your chance to go out soon enough,” Orange comforted. “We just needed to make sure the signals aren’t obscured by anything on Polus. If someone were to get into an emergency and wasn’t able to contact us, it could lead to a disaster.”</p><p>	“I know…” White didn’t bother hiding their disappointment. </p><p>	“I promise, you’ll be able to go out next time. I could even pair you with someone of your choice,” Orange offered with a wink. White couldn’t help but smile at that. </p><p>	Then, messages started flooding into the main chat. </p><p>[Green] Heard something that sounded like an explosion, what happened??<br/>[Cyan] it sounded like it came from the main building. what do we do<br/>[Brown] wheres Red<br/>[Red] Stand at attention. Green and Blue, approach the building. </p><p>	A moment later, another message popped up on the screen that made White’s blood run cold. </p><p>[Purple] We encountered an imposter. Shot at it but triggered something. We are returning to the ship now. </p><p><i>Black was with them… What if they’re hurt??</i> </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“Black. Black, wake up.” </p><p>	Black groaned. Someone was shaking them. <i>Purple.</i> Their back ached. They opened their eyes. Purple was kneeling in front of them, one hand on their own cracked helmet, one hand on Black’s shoulder. </p><p>	“Are you okay? We need to get back to the ship to get checked for any injuries.”</p><p>	Black blinked and pulled themself into a sitting position. </p><p>	“My head…” It felt like someone had hit them with a sledgehammer. There was a knot at the back of their skull, which throbbed awfully.</p><p>	“You hit it. We need to get back to the ship.” </p><p>	Black glanced to the ground. Their tablet lay next to the wall they’d hit, its screen a spiderweb of cracks. They grabbed it and stumbled to their feet. </p><p>	“Do you need help?” Purple asked. Black shook their head, immediately regretting it as the throbbing momentarily intensified. They caught a glimpse of Grey’s crumpled body, motionless in a puddle of blood and some other liquid, probably the acid imposters were known to produce. </p><p>	Purple began to lead them towards the building’s exit. Blue and Green were waiting just outside the building’s twisted frame. </p><p>	“What happened?” Blue gasped as they approached. </p><p>	“We’ll explain later. Black got hurt, we need to get to the ship.” Purple didn’t stop walking, and Blue and Green escorted them back to the Skeld. </p><p>	The throbbing in Black’s head had dulled a little as they climbed into the airlock. The doors were open courtesy of Red, who stood by the control panel. They walked with Black and Purple to Medbay as Purple explained what had happened to them. </p><p>	“Alright, I’ll leave you to do whatever medical things you need,” Red said as they walked through the doorway of Medbay. “I’ll inform everyone to remain on guard as well.” They turned to leave as Yellow hurried in. </p><p>	“I’m here,” they announced. “Purple, do you need me to do anything?” </p><p>	“I don’t think so. I’m not badly injured, thanks to my helmet. I’ll examine Black, but they should be okay as well.” Purple removed their cracked helmet and set it on one of the Medbay desks. “Black, take a seat on one of the cots, please.” </p><p>	Black did as they were told. Yellow lingered in the doorway for a moment, then disappeared, saying something to their partner Brown as they walked away in the direction of the cafeteria. </p><p>	Purple asked them a few mundane questions, typing notes into their tablet as Black responded to each. Thankfully, the pain in Black’s head had all but faded, but it was replaced by a pang in their stomach. <i>I should’ve eaten more than some fruit for breakfast…</i> </p><p>	“You’re looking good,” Purple concluded. “You should probably get some rest, though, so no more going outside ‘till tomorrow.” </p><p>	“Don’t you normally do, like, a scan or something?” Black questioned.</p><p>	Purple glanced at the scanner in the corner of the room. “You’re just a bit banged up. If you were worse, I’d recommend it, but you should be fine without a scan. Stay here for the rest of the day so I can keep an eye on you.” </p><p>	<i>That makes sense, I guess.</i></p><p>	“Anyways, I’ll be at the desk here. Tell me if you start feeling worse.” Purple took a seat at the desk by the door and started working on their tablet.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>{Recovered Log, Crewmate 02847 "Gray"}</p><p>Apr 12</p><p>Magenta turned up dead today. According to Teal, it's homicide, seemingly first degree. I checked the weapons storage to see if anything was out of place. Found several guns missing... If this is what I think it is, we're fucked. Everyone knows the scanner's been broken for a week. I can only hope my death is quick. I hope the kids don't suffer.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. A Visit</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>White visits Black in Medbay.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Out of all the people who could have appeared at the door of Medbay asking if there was anything they could do to help, White was someone Black would have least suspected. Yet there White was. They were breathing a bit heavier than usual, as if they’d ran here, yet they seemed no less composed than usual, if not a little less <i>cold</i>. Black wasn’t sure what to think of it. </p><p>	“White? Well, not really, unless you’d like to keep Black company. They’re on bedrest for at least the next few hours, just in case.” Purple barely looked up from their work. </p><p>	Surprisingly, White approached the cot Black occupied, shuffling their feet the slightest bit more than usual. </p><p>	“Do you… <i>want</i> to talk to me?” they asked Black, picking at one of their nails. Even more odd, however, they were <i>looking</i> at Black directly, their eyes filled with what must have been worry. </p><p>	“I-I guess? I mean, if you want to…” Black stared back. <i>Is this the first time they’ve actually made eye contact with me?</i> </p><p>	White paused for a moment before blurting out, “You don’t hate me, right?” </p><p>	“Huh?” Black wasn’t sure they’d heard right. <i>White</i> was the one constantly avoiding them, <i>White</i> was the one that must have found some reason to be annoyed at them, <i>White</i> was the one who barely ever even looked in their direction. “Why would you think that?” </p><p>	Relief colored White’s expression. “I don’t know, really,” they admitted, glancing down at their hands. “I… Ever since we’ve met, I feel like I’ve only annoyed you, and…” They stopped themselves halfway through their sentence. “Never mind. Brown and Yellow have been getting to me.”</p><p>	“Tell me about it. Brown teases me all the time, it’s awful sharing a room with them.” Black didn’t mention <i>what</i> Brown had been teasing them about. White didn’t need to know that Brown definitely shipped them. </p><p>	“Yes, exactly!” White raised their hands in exasperation. “Brown seems to be the worst of them, with their constant annoying remarks about…” They paused. “Uh, well, this is going to sound really weird, but… Their remarks about… You and me.” They bit their lip as they finished speaking and glanced away, as if fearing Black’s reaction. </p><p>	<i>They tease White about that too?</i></p><p>	“They say the exact same things to me!” Black exclaimed. “It’s… It’s so <i>weird</i>, you know?” </p><p>	White’s mouth twisted into a smile. “I know. I don’t know why they think we’d be good together…” They blinked. “I mean, not that I don’t think we’d be good together, uh, we’ve just not really talked, you know?” </p><p>	Black couldn’t help but giggle a little. They had to admit, White’s flustered rambling was, dare they say, <i>cute</i>. </p><p>	“Yeah, I agree,” Black said, trying to hide their smile. “Maybe we… should talk more, then. If only to prove them wrong…” Or right.</p><p>	White nodded. “Are you… going to be able to go out again tomorrow?” </p><p>	Black shrugged. “Depends on what Purple says.” They looked to Purple for some kind of confirmation. </p><p>	“Black can probably go,” Purple responded. “They don’t seem seriously injured, just some bruising at worst.” </p><p>	“Nice!” White exclaimed, clasping their hands together. Black couldn’t stop a grin from spreading across their face. <i>Is White asking me to go with them?</i> </p><p>	The two proceeded to have a very pleasant conversation about colonies. Black had grown up in a colony, but White had apparently grown up on Earth. Black was about to ask them more when an alert pinged across theirs, White’s, and Purple’s tablets- an alert for a meeting. </p><p>	“Black, you can stay in bed. I’ll tell you the details of the meeting afterwards,” Purple told Black as they headed out of Medbay with White. Black sighed and leaned back in their cot. </p><p>	Some <i>feeling</i> was rising up within them- no, two feelings. One of them was familiar hunger, hunger that had only been kept at bay by the distraction of the conversation with White. And the other, a much more pleasant feeling, bubbled in their chest and threatened to paint their cheeks with a rosy blush. <i>Affection?</i> </p><p>	Black was distracted from their musings over the second feeling by the physical sensation of the first. The hunger seemed to claw at their stomach for a moment, then subsided, then came back in a wave. They wanted to double over for a minute, then the moment passed, and was replaced by a dull hollowness. </p><p>	Black was struck with confusion. They hadn’t felt hunger like this in a while. And they’d eaten breakfast no more than a few hours ago. </p><p>	Or maybe it was less hunger and more… Craving? Yes, it was definitely <i>craving</i> of some sort, and the more Black thought, the more they narrowed it down. They wanted <i>meat</i>, fresh meat, which was odd to them. <i>Why would I suddenly have such strong cravings?</i> </p><p>	Red’s voice drifted to them from the cafeteria, and Black suddenly felt a wave of very strong <i>resentment</i> flooding over them, not unlike disdain for a certain annoying classmate they’d hated in school. Yet this hatred was deeper, and Black shook their head to clear it. <i>Why?</i> Why were they suddenly hating Red? They’d rarely felt negatively towards the captain before. </p><p>	<i>I should ask Purple… I hope these mood swings don’t mean I have some kind of horrible brain damage…</i> </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“We <i>need</i> to keep our guard up.” Red banged their fist on the table for emphasis. White nearly jumped as the whole table shook. <i>Do they have to be so aggressive?</i> White had been feeling rather satisfied from their successful conversation with Black, but Red’s lecturing threatened to dissolve that feeling. </p><p>	Red continued to ramble on about the imposters that were surely lurking within the complex of buildings. </p><p>	“We’ve been told that most of them have been purposefully blown up, but considering those words were given to us by the very imposter that made an attempt on Purple’s and Black’s lives, they have an equal chance at being false as they do at being true.” Red continued to speak as White shuddered at the thought of Black being so close to being killed by an imposter. </p><p>	Red continued for a good five minutes, then ended the meeting with a final announcement that they’d go back out the next day. There was to be no more venturing out of the ship again until tomorrow due to the crew all having tasks that still needed to be done. </p><p>	As the crowd dissolved, White approached Red and Orange, intending to ask them if they could be paired with Black for the next day’s assessment of Polus. </p><p>	<i>They kept me in today… They can’t turn me down, plus Black’s good to go tomorrow according to Purple…</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	As soon as Purple returned from the meeting, Black called them over. </p><p>	“I’ve… I’ve been having weird symptoms,” they confessed. “I… feel like I’ve been having these weird mood swings?” They described to Purple the <i>hatred</i> they’d felt, the anger towards Red for no reason, then realized they felt it again as Blue and Green walked by Medbay’s doorway. Black <i>hated</i> them all of the sudden, for reasons they couldn’t explain. They went on to tell Purple they’d also felt a bout of hunger, when Purple stopped them. </p><p>	“Hunger… Or a craving?” Purple’s eyes glinted strangely. </p><p>	“...Craving,” Black responded. </p><p>	“For meat?” Purple leaned closer. A smile was beginning to stretch itself across their lips. “<i>Fresh</i> meat?” </p><p>	Black nodded slowly. Strangely, they felt oddly <i>safe</i> with Purple, as if they could tell them anything. They felt <i>connected</i> somehow. With Purple, they didn’t feel any anger, not the inexplicable anger they’d felt towards the other crewmates. </p><p>	“Would you eat the meat of, say, another crewmate?” Purple was definitely smiling now. Their eyes were locked with Black’s, and Black realized they’d never really looked into Purple’s eyes. Purple’s eyes were a deep blue, yet deep within them something lingered. A faint trace of something hungry, something carefully hidden from the view of the others. </p><p>	Black took a moment to think over Purple’s words. A day ago, they’d have vehemently denied feeling any sort of craving for other humans- it was cannibalism, it was disgusting- but now, people just sounded so delicious… Why should Black play by their moral code? Humans… Humans were nothing more than prey now. </p><p>	“I would.” Black let their confidence seep into their voice, and Purple smiled even wider. </p><p>	“We’re imposters, Black. In that building, we were both infected by a parasite… We aren’t human any more.” Purple paused, letting Black take in their words. Black didn’t need any time to take them in. They felt as if their mind was a blank piece of paper now, ready to be folded into something new, ready for new instructions to be written onto it. </p><p>	Black was about to respond affirmatively, but White’s voice interrupted them.</p><p>	“Black!” White stopped a few steps from Black’s cot. “Oh- Sorry, did I interrupt some medical thing?” </p><p>	Purple shook their head. Their expression returned to their default, the sharp yet somewhat impassive visage they usually wore. No, the normal Purple would have worn. </p><p>	“We were just discussing what the meeting was about.” Purple’s voice was smooth. </p><p>	“Oh, okay.” White believed their lie. “Black is still good to go out tomorrow, right?”</p><p>	“Of course.” </p><p>	“Great, Black, we’re partnered together!” White’s enthusiastic voice made Black smile, almost against their will. They felt like they should have been frowning, should have hated White like they hated Red or Blue or Green, but they <i>didn’t</i>. </p><p>	<i>Is White an imposter too?</i> There was no time to consider this possibility. White was waiting for their reply. </p><p>	“Great!” The joy Black let appear in their tone was genuine. Then, their stomach let out a rumble. “Oop… I guess I had a light breakfast…”</p><p>	“I’ll get you something from the cafeteria.” White dashed off, leaving Black alone with Purple once again. </p><p>	Purple gazed in the direction of the door for a moment before turning back to Black.</p><p>	“They’re clearly infatuated with you. They’ll be a good tool.” </p><p>	Black forced themself to smile and nod. Some part of them objected to White being referred to as a tool, though they suspected Purple might not appreciate this protest. Yet another, possibly more childish, voice in their head was squealing in joy. White? <i>Infatuated with them?</i> </p><p>	Against their own will, Black hoped it was true.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Survivors</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Black and White set out to explore the basement storage of a building.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Excited to go out with Black?” Cyan asked White as they exited their bunkroom. </p><p>	White shoved them. “You didn’t have to word it like <i>that!</i>” </p><p>	“Yes, I did,” Cyan replied through their laughter. “I saw you, asking Red and Orange to go with them.” </p><p>	“Shh!” White glanced around the locker room. Thankfully, the only other person in there was Blue, who waved amiably at them with a hand they held a tube of toothpaste in. White and Cyan returned the gesture. </p><p>	As they approached the middle table, White was surprised to see that almost half the crew was already there. There were of course Red and Orange, who were always early, but the table was also occupied by Pink and Yellow, who perked up as soon as White and Cyan approached. </p><p>	“<i>Finally!</i>” Pink exclaimed as they approached. “We’ve been waiting!” </p><p>	“Yeah, what’s that about?” White asked.</p><p>	“We need to get you ready for your... you know.” Yellow waved one hand. Their nails were painted a glittery purple shade today, like a solar system. </p><p>	White facepalmed. “You guys are taking this way too seriously. Black and I are just partners, temporarily, for a simple day mission.”</p><p>	“Mhmm. Sure.” Yellow rested their face in one palm while White and Cyan sat down next to them and Pink. </p><p>	“Come on, <i>everyone</i> ships you two. Even Orange.” Cyan looked to Orange and Red, who were on the other side of the table. Still, Orange glanced up from Red’s tablet briefly and grinned, showing them a thumbs-up. </p><p>	White buried their face in their hands. “<i>I know that</i>. But we just talked, like once, and now you guys want to act like we’re official or something.”</p><p>	“At least let me brush your hair,” Pink said, holding up the small brush that they seemed to always have on them. </p><p>	White just sighed. “Fine.” </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“Black. Wake up. You’re gonna be late for your <i>date.</i>” Brown’s annoyingly taunting voice brought an immediate wave of hatred crashing down upon Black. </p><p>	Instead of punching them, like Black would very much have liked to do, they grumbled and pulled themself out of their bed. Brown hadn’t woken them up, but they’d much rather have remained swaddled in their blankets than face the other crewmates. Somehow, everyone other than Purple and usually White set off a very seething hatred in their now imposter-ified(?) brain. </p><p>	Perhaps they should have been ashamed to admit that they were very willing to kill everyone as soon as possible. </p><p>	<i>But wouldn’t that upset White?</i> They pondered the mechanics of killing the others as they went about their morning routine. <i>It would very much upset White… They’re still human, they still care for other humans…</i> Black sighed as they brushed their teeth, perhaps a bit too loudly, as they caught a questioning glance from Brown. They shrugged it off, and continued thinking. <i>Maybe I could find another parasite, make White an imposter…</i> Yet the part of them that still maintained a shred of humanity protested to that plan. Something told them it wasn’t right, that it wasn’t what White would want. </p><p>	<i>Why do I care about them? Why should I? Imposters are supposed to consider humans little more than prey…</i> </p><p>	At last, Black entered the cafeteria. A majority of the crew was already gathered at the middle table, and Black grabbed their breakfast from the meal dispenser before joining them. It wouldn’t do much to satisfy Black’s sudden craving for human meat, but it was something to fill their still human stomach, and whatever other organs made up their human digestive tract. </p><p>	Brown was already at the table, chattering with White’s usual gang of friends. White themself offered Black a small smile as Black sat down not too far away from them. </p><p>	A moment later, Purple joined them, and Red began the morning’s meeting. It was mundane and drawn-out as usual, and Black’s hatred for Red grew with each word that exited the crewmate’s mouth. Then, they took a glance at White, who was innocently pretending to pay attention to Red while Cyan whispered something into their ear. All the anger seemed to melt, replaced by… Fondness? </p><p>	Black couldn’t tell if they wanted to smack or hug themself. The part of their consciousness that was still human was trying to grasp at their connection to White, to use it as an anchor of sorts to their humanity. The bloodthirsty imposter influence was wildly flailing around in their mind, looking for hate, for violent things, for pain of humans. Black’s human morals were as good as gone, a distant murmur against the imposter’s sadistic cacophony. </p><p>	At last, Red stopped talking, and dismissed the crewmates to a short break before they left to explore Polus’ surface yet again. Purple pulled Black into Medbay, using a final check up as an excuse. </p><p>	“Don’t kill White,” Purple instructed as soon as they were out of earshot of the others. </p><p>	Black nodded, feigning obedience but actually letting relief seep through them. They hadn’t planned on killing White. </p><p>	“I’ve heard of many imposters killing at the first impulse, but that made them obvious and quick enough to catch,” Purple continued, and Black remembered that as a medic, Purple was also trained in spotting imposters much more extensively than the rest of the crew. “We’ll wait for more people to go out, then in a day or so start building up the tension.” Purple took a breath. “Their pain will be delicious.”</p><p>	Black couldn’t help but imagine the ecstasy they’d feel in a room filled by terrified humans. How satisfying it’d feel to tear through flesh, to listen to dying cries, to feel the life ebb out of torn arteries. </p><p>	“Understood.” Black turned to leave.</p><p>	“And, Black?” </p><p>	Black glanced back to Purple. Purple’s face had twisted into something wholly abnormal for the human Purple. Their eyes glinted maliciously, their teeth just barely poked out behind their excited smile. </p><p>	“Just keep in mind, the best things in life are worth waiting for.”</p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“What was it like out on Polus?” White asked the others. They were sitting in the cafeteria, at one of the side tables, along with Cyan, Pink, Yellow and Brown. The middle table was already occupied by Red and Orange, who were no doubt planning out the day’s tasks.</p><p>	“Weird. There was a lot of snow,” Cyan replied. “Brown kept balling it up and trying to throw it at me.” </p><p>	“It’s a snowball!” Brown looked like they wanted to grab Cyan by the shoulders and start shaking them. “How do you not know what a snowball is?” </p><p>	“I don’t know! I didn’t grow up in a place where there was this much snow,” Cyan replied. “If you smear it on my helmet again, though, I will not hesitate to throw you in the lava.” </p><p>	“It would match your hair, though,” Brown argued, gesturing to Cyan’s white hair.</p><p>	“That’s no excuse!” Cyan protested.</p><p>	“Hm, your hair is <i>very</i> white,” Pink added, poking at Cyan’s hair. “Was it chemically treated?”</p><p>	Cyan nodded, though cast a stern look at Brown. White suppressed a laugh. Knowing Brown, they’d find a way to sneak a bunch of snow onto the ship for the sole purpose of messing with Cyan. </p><p>	“What’s your assignment, anyways?” Cyan spoke to White now, though White could tell they were still giving Brown the side-eye. </p><p>	“Uh…” White turned on their tablet and opened the assignment list that Red had sent to the group chat. “Apparently the basement of the residential building has some kind of storage area… We’re supposed to see if anything’s damaged.” </p><p>	“Watch out, hope there aren’t any imposters lurking down there,” Brown teased. White frowned at them. <i>Black could have gotten seriously injured by an imposter yesterday, you jerk…</i></p><p>	“Do you guys think I have time to put on another coat of nail polish?” Yellow asked out of the blue, and the others shrugged. Just as they glanced back down to their nails, Red called everyone back to the middle table. “Guess not.”</p><p>	Once everyone was gathered, Red made sure they’d all received their instructions and then sent them off to the weapons room. </p><p>	Once there, Green unlocked a case in the wall and instructed the others that the guns they were about to receive were standard issue pistols. “Use them only in cases of emergency,” Green instructed. “You should return them to me after you return to the ship.” </p><p>	Upon receiving the gun, White put it into one of their suit pockets. </p><p>	“Please find your partners as we leave the ship,” Red said as the group began walking out of the weapons room and down the hall towards the storage room. White turned to see Black was already beside them. </p><p>	“Oh- hey,” White said, smiling even though they knew Black wouldn’t be able to see it. They both were wearing their helmets in preparation to leave the ship. </p><p>	Black nodded to them as they continued into the storage room. Ahead of them, Red opened the door and jumped out of the ship with Purple. They were followed by Cyan and Brown, the latter giving an exaggerated salute before they hopped backwards onto the landing platform of Polus. White and Black followed them. It wasn’t a large drop from the airlock onto the ground, not much farther than the bus evacuation drills White had done in school. They slipped a bit on the packed snow on the ground, and Black grabbed their hand to help steady them. </p><p>	“Thanks,” White told them. Black let go of their hand, and despite their insulated gloves, White felt warm where Black’s hand had touched theirs. </p><p>	“No problem,” Black muttered as the two headed towards the residential building. They both had their tablets out, though the flurry of snow that was currently blowing made it necessary to wipe melting snowflakes off the screens every so often. </p><p>	According to the map on White’s tablet, the residential building was the large one up ahead. They winced as they noticed the state of it- bullet holes riddled its outer brick walls, and the front doors hung off their hinges. </p><p>	“This is creepy,” they murmured to Black as they stepped through the mangled doorway. The tile floors were scuffed beneath them, and White gazed around the room. They’d entered what seemed to be the building’s communal area, though it was clear there would be no more casual gatherings there for a while. The room was in a state of disarray- broken furniture and various debris littered the floor, and much of it was damp or coated in a layer of frost, likely from snow that had blown in through the broken windows. White shuddered as their eyes landed on a mauled corpse in a suit that had once been green. </p><p>	<i>It’s only a corpse… There’ll be a lot of dead bodies here… I’ve just got to continue on…</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black heard the shudder in White’s voice as they entered the now-abandoned residential building. They couldn’t help but drink in the crewmate’s fear. </p><p>	<i>I could kill them here…</i> </p><p>	The thought entered their mind, but instead of excitement, they were struck with an acute feeling of horror. White seemed so <i>fragile</i> now, so easy to kill. </p><p>	The two continued onwards through the room. As they passed the body of one of the previous Polus inhabitants, Black fought the urge to take off their helmet and breathe in the scent of blood. Though the body had long been frozen, they knew the familiar tang would still linger, tempting and rich… </p><p>	“That must be the basement,” White said, distracting them from their cravings for human blood. They looked to where White was pointing- a door near the corner of the room that had a sign with “BASEMENT ACCESS” printed in bold letters stuck to it. </p><p>	“Let’s go, then.” Black walked faster until they stood in front of the door. Besides them, White hesitated before tugging on the handle, as if an imposter could jump out from behind it at any moment. Black found themself relieved when the door creaked open to reveal nothing but an empty stairwell. </p><p>	A flick of the light switch revealed the electricity to be non functional, to White’s clear dismay. They edged closer to Black as the two took out their flashlights and descended the stairs into the basement. For some unknown reason, Black felt no swell of hunger as the crewmate brushed into them. </p><p>	<i>Do I… Still care for them? Even though they’re human?</i> </p><p>	Black pushed the thought away. They knew they’d have to kill White at some point. It was no use getting so close to them now. Yet they didn’t stop themself from comfortingly patting White on the shoulder when the crewmate jumped at a distant creak, and they didn’t push White away when the crewmate lingered nearer to them than they were used to. </p><p>	Both of them continued farther into the basement. It was essentially a large storage room, lined with shelves of supplies. </p><p>	“There’s no water damage,” White observed, shining their flashlight around the room. They kept glancing behind them, as if there could be an imposter lurking in the shadows where their light didn’t quite reach.</p><p>	“That’s good,” Black replied. “Most of these supplies seem almost untouched…” Though the imposter parasite that had made its home in their mind had already altered their vision enough that the flashlight wasn’t necessary for them to see, they still shone it around as they took in the state of the storage room. Indeed, many of the boxes around the room were unopened, though there was a toppled shelf near the back. “What’s that?” </p><p>	“What?” White’s voice rose in pitch as they turned to shine their flashlight where Black was looking. Somehow, their fear was less appetizing to Black than it had been the first time Black sensed it.</p><p>	“There’s… A door there,” Black told them. “Behind that toppled shelf…” White visibly relaxed a bit. </p><p>	“Let’s check it out,” they suggested, and the two made their way closer. Black carefully stepped over a spilled box of powdered laundry detergent, nudging White to do the same. </p><p>	It was, indeed, a door behind the shelf, which was leaning against a wall, blocking access. </p><p>	“We’ll have to move it.” Black stepped closer, but White grabbed their shoulder.	</p><p>	“Wait…” Their voice trembled. “What if it’s blocked for a reason?” Their grip tightened as there was a distant howl of wind from somewhere outside. </p><p>	Black paused. They hadn’t considered that. If there <i>was</i> an impostor, or multiple behind that door… It was a danger to White. </p><p>	“Get your gun out,” they told White. Both of them deposited their tablets on a nearby shelf. Black then dragged the shelf, which was thankfully empty, away from the door and leaned against it, pressing their helmet to the metal of the door. </p><p>	No sound echoed from within. If there was someone in there, they were being very quiet. </p><p>	“I’m going to open it,” Black said, and White nodded. They clutched their gun as Black slowly turned the handle. </p><p>	Black peered through the doorway. The room they’d just opened was smaller than the main basement, but definitely more cluttered. Boxes were stacked along the walls, though Black looked closer and noticed several other pieces of technology among them. </p><p>	<i>Hypersleep pods.</i> There were three activated pods on the floor, glowing slightly to indicate that they were in use. </p><p>	“What’s there?” White crept closer to them. </p><p>	“Someone’s in those pods…” Black pointed to the activated hypersleep pods. They illuminated the room dimly, and White and Black carefully approached them. </p><p>	“They’re kids…” White murmured, staring down at the inhabitants of the pods. Black gazed at the faces of the sleeping children. The hypersleep pods would keep them in a coma-like state of unconsciousness until deactivated. </p><p>	“Someone must have put them there and left,” Black realized. “What do we do now?” </p><p>	“I’ll contact Red.” White left the room to retrieve their tablet. Black continued gazing down at the children. The hunger flared up again, though it was duller than the first bout of cravings they’d experienced the previous day. </p><p>	<i>I can’t eat these kids. White would notice.</i> They shook their head to push the thoughts out of their mind.</p><p>	<i>Someday… Someday soon, I’ll begin the killing… Not yet.</i></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>{Recovered Log, crewmate identification corrupted}</p><p>Apr 18</p><p>I can't save them. <br/>Not while I'm alive at least... There are only three hypersleep pods, and I promised White I'd take care of Lime for them. <br/>I don't want to risk locking them away unnecessarily, alone in a basement... But if things get worse, I might have to.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. The Kids</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The three children are awoken and taken to the ship.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>In less than fifteen minutes, half the crew were gathered in the basement of the residential building, poking their heads into the small room to look at the sleeping children. </p><p>	“We should wake them up,” Red announced. </p><p>	“What if they’re imposters?” Blue worried, leaning into Green. </p><p>	“We’ve got guns, we can easily overpower them,” Brown argued. </p><p>	“Can we really kill kids?” Cyan’s remark was more of a murmur, but the others considered it anyway. After a moment, Red sighed and entered the small room in order to open the hypersleep pods. White followed, lingering in the corner, while Black helped Red to deactivate the pods. Purple joined them as well, shining their flashlight towards the side of the room the pods lay in in order to illuminate it. </p><p>	White glanced out the door. Blue, Green, Cyan and Brown waited in the main basement, edging closer to see what was going on. </p><p>	<i>If chaos breaks loose, will we trample each other in our race for the door?</i> White pushed the thought away. Even if the kids were imposters, they probably wouldn’t be able to do enough damage to cause that much chaos.</p><p>	White turned back to the pods as Red and Black cracked them open. Air hissed out as it escaped the coffin-like boxes. </p><p>	There were murmurs as the kids in the boxes began to wake up. Purple hurried over to help them out of their pods, and White stayed back, holding their flashlight with one hand and keeping the other poised to grab their gun if necessary. </p><p>	Red, Black, and Purple each helped one of the children out of the pods. The three kids were quite young- the oldest, a child in a lavender suit and curly dark hair that fell around their shoulders, was probably less than ten years old. The other two seemed to be a few years younger, and blinked at the crewmates that surrounded them. </p><p>	The littlest child, who was wearing a lime suit, was the first to speak as they gazed around with their wide eyes. </p><p>	“Where’s my parents?” The r sounded more like a w, and White felt their heart constrict with pain. This child would never see their parents again. </p><p>	“They aren’t here right now. Come with us,” Purple told them gently. </p><p>	“Where are their helmets?” Red looked around the room, and Black pointed to a shelf behind the pods. White shined the flashlight towards where Black had pointed, and it landed on three child-size helmets, lined up perfectly on a shelf that was too tall for any of the kids to reach. Red retrieved the helmets and handed each child theirs. </p><p>	The two younger children put theirs on immediately, but the oldest gazed down at theirs. </p><p>	“Put on your helmet, we need to go,” Purple urged them, and the child lifted the helmet and placed it onto their head. It clicked in place, and Red, Black and Purple began to lead the children out of the room. </p><p>	“They really are kids,” Cyan gasped as the children passed them. </p><p>	“This is creepy,” White muttered, trying to speak quietly so the kids wouldn’t hear. “Do you think they’re imposters?” </p><p>	Cyan shook their head. “I feel like they would’ve attacked us by now.”</p><p>	“They could just be, you know, waiting,” Brown suggested loud enough for the oldest kid to turn their head and look at them. White lightly punched Brown in the arm. </p><p>	“Not so loud,” they hissed, hoping Brown would get the hint. Thankfully, Brown shut their mouth as the group ascended from the basement. White couldn’t help but feel a bit relieved to be out of the shadowy area. </p><p>	The group continued across the Polus settlement, and as they neared the launchpad, White noticed Yellow and Pink waiting by the ship for them. </p><p>	<i>Oh, right, Yellow is a nurse… Of course they’d need to help with these kids…</i></p><p>	“Wow, the whole crew’s here,” Yellow commented as everyone stood on the launchpad. Red began to climb into the ship as the airlock doors opened, courtesy of Orange, who stood waiting for them in the storage room. </p><p>	“What’re they even going to do? Three kids, and their parents aren’t here-,” White smacked Brown on the helmet to cut them off. </p><p>	“Don’t mention their parents,” White told them. They glanced at the kids, who Red, Purple and Yellow were helping to climb the ladder to get to the airlock. </p><p>	“What are we going to do with them, though?” Cyan wondered aloud. </p><p>	“I guess bring them back,” White said.</p><p>	“MIRA will ship them around to different colonies,” Brown replied with a shrug. “Their childhood will never really be the same but we all know MIRA doesn’t really care about human lives anyways.” </p><p>	White and Cyan gaped at them, and Brown just tilted their head to the side.</p><p>	“What? Was it something I said?” </p><p>	Just then, Blue urged them all forwards to climb onto the ship, and White and Cyan snapped out of their stupor. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Human emotions swirled around Black. Black couldn’t help but relish them- the anxiousness radiating off Red and Orange, who’d likely never had to deal with this kind of situation before, the worry from the two smaller children, who were no doubt confused, the sadness from the oldest child, who clearly understood the gravity of the situation. More emotions filled the room, though Black only tasted the negative ones. </p><p>	They found the sensation odd- of course, being a human just a day ago, they’d never sensed emotions like this. They suspected it had something to do with how imposters enjoyed human pain, though they’d have to ask Purple for a confirmation. </p><p>	For now, they just followed the crowd. Yellow was trying to comfort the children, though it was clear that they were also anxious about the whole situation. Red and Orange were talking to Purple, who was feigning worry about the children being impostors. </p><p>	“What’ll we do if they are? We can’t kill kids,” Purple said, though Black was sure they were smiling under their helmet. </p><p>	“We might have to…” Orange’s tone was tainted with sadness.</p><p>	“No, these kids were purposefully hidden. Some adult knew the base would be overrun, and put the kids in those pods so they’d be safe,” Red reasoned. “I doubt they’d have been so carefully hidden if they were imposters.” </p><p>	Black turned their attention to the other crewmates, who were lagging behind the group. They sensed a certain sadness radiating off Pink and Brown, who kept glancing at the kids. Black found themself enjoying Brown’s sadness much more, though it was more subtle. </p><p>	<i>Is that because I already disliked Brown?</i> </p><p>	Black shrugged off the thought. It didn’t matter whether their feelings made sense or not. They’d just end up killing all these people anyways. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	White watched as Purple and Yellow led the kids into Medbay. Purple was explaining to Red that they’d need to scan them to make sure they weren’t imposters. As Red nodded, Orange turned to White.</p><p>	“You’ll need to contact HQ and tell them what we’ve found,” Orange said. “After the scan results come in, we’ll decide what we need to do.” </p><p>	White nodded. “Should I send the message now?”</p><p>	Orange glanced into Medbay, then back at White. “I think it’d be best to wait for the scan results.” </p><p>	“Sounds good,” White replied as Orange headed into the cafeteria with Red. Blue and Green followed them, though not before taking a look into Medbay and muttering sympathetically about “those poor kids…”. Black followed them. </p><p>	White turned to Cyan, Brown and Pink, who had become abnormally quiet. White, too, had to admit that they didn’t know what to say. Then Cyan spoke up.</p><p>	“What now?” </p><p>	The others offered only shrugs. </p><p>	“I guess I’ll wait for the results of the kids’ scans, like Orange said to.” White wandered into Medbay. They knew if they stayed in the hallway, the others would start asking them for details on “how things were going with Black” or something like that. <br/>	Inside Medbay, both Yellow and Purple stood by the scanner. The child in red was in the process of being scanned, and the one in lime sat on the floor next to them. The lavender-suited child looked up as White entered. </p><p>	“Hey… Orange told me to wait for the scan results.” White raised a hand in greeting as they approached the scanner. </p><p>	“Cool, Lavender’s clear,” Yellow told them. The scanner bleeped, and Purple motioned for the red-suited child to step off. </p><p>	“So’s this one,” Purple noted, typing something into their tablet. </p><p>	“Crimson!” chirped the child as they stepped off the scanner. “They called me Crimson, since one of my parents was already Red.” </p><p>	“Great, thanks.” White sat down on one of the cots as Yellow helped the last child onto the scanner. They then noticed Lavender staring at them. They smiled in what they hoped was a friendly manner, and one corner of Lavender’s mouth lifted, ever so slightly. </p><p>	“You’re white, just like one of Lime’s parents!” Crimson exclaimed, running up to White. Their eyes gleamed, despite the fact they were on a strange ship filled with people they didn’t know. </p><p>	White nodded, managing a laugh. These were just normal kids, though they realized with a pang that made the tragedy they’d endured all the sadder. </p><p>	The scanner bleeped, and White turned back to see Lime stumbling off of the scanner. </p><p>	“Well, they’re all human. No imposters detected,” Purple confirmed. “Tell Red and Orange to message me if they need more details.” </p><p>	“Great, thanks,” White responded, standing up and heading for the door. </p><p>	“Byeee!” Crimson called after them. White smiled and gave them a little wave, just to humor the child. </p><p>	They found Red and Orange in the cafeteria and told them of the scanner’s results. Both looked relieved as soon as White told them all the children were human. </p><p>	“Okay, I’ll message you the message to pass onto HQ,” Red told White, then dismissed them.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Meeting in the Vents</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Purple has a plan.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Black finished their day’s tasks not long after lunch. They headed for the door of the electrical room, intending to head to their bunkroom to fold some origami and maybe take a nap. As they were a few steps away, Purple suddenly appeared, startling them. </p><p>	“Oh- hey, what’s up?” Black asked them. </p><p>	Purple glanced over their shoulder before stepping into the room. “We need to plan… We can’t risk doing it here, though.” They gestured around the room. “Someone might hear us.” </p><p>	Black nodded. “Where should we talk then?” </p><p>	“The vents. Meet me there after dinner. You’ll find it’s quite easy to shift your body structure to fit into them.” </p><p>	“Okay…” Black let their voice trail off. Purple walked away briskly, and Black was left with a sense of impending disaster. </p><p>	<i>Disaster for the crewmates, not for me</i>, they reminded themself, but they couldn’t help but feel a bit perturbed by Purple’s skill at organizing the whole murder thing. Soon, White and the others would start to die one by one, and Black would aid in that process. </p><p>	<i>Why are you feeling upset? You’re an imposter. You’re meant to kill them.</i> </p><p>	Black just sighed to themself. Perhaps they were an imposter, but maybe they could make the most of their time with the other crewmates while they could. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	White was admittedly surprised to find Black at the door of the communications room. </p><p>“Hey, do you need something?” they asked, setting aside their cards. They’d been playing with Cyan, who was now smirking at White. </p><p>“Not really… Just wanted to hang out, I guess…” Black lingered by the door awkwardly.</p><p>“Come in! We were just playing cards,” White invited. </p><p>“Yes, Black, come join us,” Cyan said, raising their eyebrows at White. White shot them a glance that they hoped warned, <i>Don’t say anything weird!</i></p><p>	Black took a seat near them on the floor, and White began to reshuffle the cards as they and Cyan shifted to form a sort of triangle with each person at a point. </p><p>	“So…” Cyan drawled a bit on the ‘o’ sound. “Any reason you’re suddenly joining us?” </p><p>	“Ah, not really…” Black folded their hands in their lap. “Just finished my tasks early and figured why not be sociable.” </p><p>	White nodded and started to deal out the cards, which were admittedly looking a bit beat up from how often they’d been used in the past few weeks. </p><p>	“Any tea on that side of the ship?” White asked, tilting their head to the side as they finished dealing. </p><p>	“Black doesn’t talk to anyone, they wouldn’t be able to tell,” Cyan teased as they picked up their cards. </p><p>	“Yeah, Cyan’s right.” A smile played on Black’s lips, and White let their gaze linger on Black’s face for a second. The other crewmate seemed happy, and White couldn’t help but hope that their own presence contributed to Black’s mood. </p><p>	They started the card game, and got a few turns in before the sound of rapid yet light footsteps interrupted them. All three of the crewmates turned to the door just in time to see the child in red rush through it and abruptly dive to the floor underneath the desk, narrowly missing Black in the process. </p><p>	The second child, the one in the lavender suit, hurried in after their comrade. </p><p>	“Sorry!” They exclaimed, throwing a glare at the child in the red suit. “Crimson’s being-,”</p><p>	“I’m playing tag with Lime!” Crimson huffed, sitting up under the desk. “Not my fault they’re being slow.”</p><p>	Sure enough, the third and smallest child scurried into the room as well. Their tan face reddened as they saw Crimson crouching underneath the desk. </p><p>	“You didn’t wait for me!” Lime cried, and Lavender frowned at Crimson then turned to the adults on the floor. </p><p>	“Sorry again…” Lavender blinked rapidly, their tone tinged with sadness. White couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy for the child. Though Crimson and Lime might have been too young to have comprehended what had happened to their colony, Lavender wasn’t. </p><p>	“It’s alright, we aren’t working right now, so you didn’t interrupt anything,” White reassured them. “Say, how about you join our game?” </p><p>	“Oo! Game!” Crimson hopped out from underneath the desk, nearly bumping their head in the process. Lime plopped down on the floor to watch as White began to explain the rules to the two older children. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black couldn’t prevent a smile from forming on their face as they watched how White patiently walked through the rules of the card game with Lavender and Crimson. White was so admirably kind, and their mild yet nurturing expression as they showed Crimson how to hold their cards was something Black felt they could watch for hours. </p><p>	They played a few games, letting the kids win as often as they could, until Crimson declared the game to be boring and ran off. Lavender and Lime followed, the former departing with a wave to the adults in the room. </p><p>	White gathered up the cards that remained on the floor. </p><p>	“I guess it’s almost dinner time,” they remarked, glancing at a digital clock on the wall. The other two agreed, and after helping to clean up the cards, all three of them headed to the cafeteria. </p><p>	Dinner was uneventful. Black lingered on the fringes of White’s group of friends. Blue and Green whispered lovey-dovey stuff to each other as they ate. The kids actually behaved decently, hanging around White and the others. White was kind to them, Cyan seemed amused by their presence, Yellow was indifferent, and Pink and Brown remained somewhat uncomfortable in regards to them, though they tried to hide it. At another table, Red and Orange were too absorbed in their planning to come over and chat, though Bob roamed the cafeteria, chirping out greetings and subsequently retreating to Orange when the kids tried to chase it. Purple sat on their own, pretending to work though they were actually likely planning how to massacre everyone in the room silently and systematically. </p><p>	After the meal, Black slipped away from the group, heading to the electrical room. There was a fairly large vent there, and they carefully opened the grate before peering into the chute. The opening was too small for a normal human to fit into, but Black discovered that it was, in fact, quite easy to dislocate their joints and manipulate their body to fit into the space. Thankfully, the vent widened after a few feet, enough for them to comfortably crawl as they would have done if they were a normal human. </p><p>	They ran into Purple after a minute. The two imposters sat up, and Black leaned against the metal paneled wall of the vent. They’d met at a junction that had decently tall walls- not tall enough to stand, but tall enough to kneel. </p><p>	“I have a plan,” Purple told them. Black nodded, signalling for the other imposter to go on. </p><p>	“We let a few days pass,” Purple began. “Let more people leave the ship. In the meantime we can steal extra meals from the meal dispenser when the others sleep.” Their expression was mild, though thinly veiled behind that neutrality was some kind of twisted anticipation of the bloodlust they surely plotted to indulge. </p><p>	“Then, we begin some subtle sabotage. Just to get tensions running.” Purple was now smiling ever so slightly, though their eyes narrowed with malice. “Then a day or so later, begin the killing.” </p><p>	“I guess you are the expert,” Black agreed. </p><p>	“I am. Now, don’t talk with me unless it’s an emergency. We don’t want to act suspicious.” Purple shifted, then turned to leave. “That’s all.” </p><p>	The two parted ways. The plan had begun.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Incidents</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The Polus base has more dangers than just imposters lurking about.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A day after the children were found, another emergency rattled the crewmates. Black, who had been in the electrical room, was surprised to find the group chat suddenly blowing up with messages. They made their way into the storage room, where, a few moments later, Yellow and Pink entered the ship. Both of them were clearly distressed, and Black drank in their negative emotions. Perhaps a week ago they would have slapped themself for reveling in the pain of others, but the parasite inside them enjoyed it now. </p><p>	After removing their cracked helmet, Yellow explained in an uncharacteristically shaky voice that they’d entered a room only to be met with an explosion. Though neither of them were badly hurt, they worried that it was a trap set by Gray, and that there might be others. </p><p>	Red called a meeting after hearing their report. The crewmates gathered in the cafeteria, worry filling the room. Once they’d all arrived and gathered around the middle table, Red spoke. </p><p>	“Pink and Yellow encountered a room that appeared to be rigged to set off an explosion as soon as they entered it. We’re worried that there could be similar traps set around the base, and are asking you all to take extreme caution when entering previously sealed areas.” </p><p>	“That’s awful,” Blue murmured. They were sitting closer to Green than usual, the two gripping each other’s hands almost protectively. </p><p>	“Cyan, I’m asking you to read up on protocols for an event like this,” Red addressed Cyan, who nodded and typed something into their tablet. “White, inform HQ of what’s happened. See if they have any instructions for us.” </p><p>	Black turned to look to White, and immediately noticed the other crewmate’s wide eyes. White was listening to Red, but they were more rigid than usual, and Black could feel the waves of worry coming off of them. Black should’ve enjoyed the crewmate’s fear, but instead, they felt a wave of anxiety rising in their own chest. Another emotion joined it, and Black almost flinched when they realized what it was. They wanted to <i>protect</i> White. A normal, non-imposter crewmate. </p><p>	<i>Do I really like them? Why?</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	White nervously tapped their fingers on the helmet they’d set on their lap. </p><p>	<i>A trap? Set by an imposter?</i> </p><p>	It was unprecedented. They’d never heard of imposters doing something like this, in a show of previously used intelligence as well as a clear attempt to hurt as many people as possible. </p><p>	Imposters were supposed to only want to kill, to cause discord within a crew, not set traps and utilize whatever knowledge they’d previously gained. </p><p>	As soon as the meeting was over, White returned to the communications room and looked up the profiles for every citizen of the Polus base. They scrolled through pages of names and colors until they found it. </p><p>	Gray<br/>	Assignment: Weapons and Explosives Specialist</p><p>	So it was true. Gray was one of two specialists on the Polus base who would be educated in explosives, enough to set a trap for any investigations teams to trigger. </p><p>	“What’re you doing?” Crimson’s perky voice made White jump. They quickly exited the list of profiles and swiveled around in their chair to face the child. </p><p>	Crimson was standing quite close to them, trying to get a glance of the computer screen. By the door, Lavender had seated themself on a table, letting their legs dangle down as they watched Lime scribble with markers on a blank sheet of paper. </p><p>	“Just… work.” White forced a smile. A million thoughts were running through their head, but those thoughts were too concerning to share with a child such as Crimson. </p><p>	They’d always been told that imposters were just people infected with a parasite that gradually made them go insane, driving them to murder as they slowly lost their grip on humanity. That imposters were predictable, easy to deal with to the trained eye. But what Gray had done seemed more like a carefully thought out plan. The explosive would cause people pain even if Gray wasn’t there to witness it. That was clear malevolence, more than insanity. It was sadism. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black lingered outside the communications room. They couldn’t help but smile as the three kids ran past them and into the room. The kids had begun following White around like ducklings, as if White was their parent all the sudden. </p><p>	Black wanted to join them, but they found themself unable to think of something to say. Part of them wanted to find a way to warn White that the inhabitants of the ship might be in peril. But there was no non-suspicious way to do that. And of course, that would mean betraying Purple. </p><p>	“No, Crimson, be careful!” White’s voice rang out. Black hurried into the room to find that Crimson had stood up on one of the tables and was now attempting to climb a shelf. </p><p>	“I am careful!” Crimson protested, but a misstep caused them to slip on a book on the table. Lavender gasped as White jumped up and caught the child before they could fall to the floor. </p><p>	Black watched White carefully set Crimson on the tile floor. “Impressive,” they said, only realizing the word had been spoken aloud when White turned to them. </p><p>	“Thanks…” White brushed a stray strand of their hair behind their ear. “These kids are rambunctious.” </p><p>	“We aren’t ram- rambump…” Crimson started to protest, but stumbled over their words. </p><p>	“You are,” Lavender retorted. They were sitting on another of the tables, swinging their legs. Lime sat on the floor under the table, gazing up at Lavender in between strokes of a marker they were using to color with. </p><p>	Black chuckled. “How’s the communication with MIRA going?” </p><p>	“I haven’t gotten a message from Red to send to them yet,” White admitted. “I think they’ve had a lot on their plate…” It was true. Black had noticed since the team had landed, Red always seemed to be doing something- talking with Orange, reprimanding various crewmates, poring through documents in the Admin room. </p><p>	“I’ve been trying to keep these three occupied so they don’t cause trouble, y’know?” White continued, motioning to the three kids, who were now engaged in trying to reach a container of markers on another of the shelves. White handed it to Crimson, who triumphantly set it on the floor and started coloring on the same sheet of paper as Lime. </p><p>	“That’s sweet of you,” Black said. “If you ever need anything, let me know, I can probably keep them out of your hair for a bit…” </p><p>	<i>What am I saying? I have no interest in wrangling a bunch of children. But if it’s for White…</i> Black glanced back to White to see a smile gracing the crewmate’s face. </p><p>	“Thanks… That’s thoughtful…” White studied their boots. “I’ll keep it in mind…” </p><p>	“Ey, lovebirds, break it up, Red wants to talk to White.” Black whirled around to see Brown standing in the doorway. They felt a surge of annoyance at the other crewmate’s intrusion, but sighed internally. It couldn’t be helped if the ship’s captain needed White for whatever duty. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Two days later, another incident occurred. White was heading through the hall when they nearly bumped into Green, who was supporting a limping Blue. White winced as they noticed the jagged gash near Blue’s ankle, which was now spilling blood onto the tile of the hall. </p><p>	“Do you need help?” White asked them. </p><p>	“Please.” Blue’s response was more of a hiss through clenched teeth. White carefully took their other arm, letting Blue rest it on their shoulders. </p><p>	As the three walked to Medbay, Blue explained that they’d been in a more unstable section of the building when they’d put a foot through the floor. A piece of jagged metal under the floor had slashed open their leg, leading to their injury. </p><p>	The week continued with no more injuries, though there were a few close calls. Thankfully, MIRA had instructed the crew to avoid the building where the explosives had been found, so there were no more of those types of incidents.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>{Green's Personal Journal}</p><p>38 Days After Takeoff</p><p>Blue was wounded today... I hope they're okay. Purple said they should be fine as long as they don't move their leg too much as it could mess with the stitches... Blue seems upset that they'd not able to go out on the planet more. I promised them I'd take pictures of anything interesting I saw.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Leaving</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The crew prepares to leave Polus.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A few days later, Red announced that they’d be leaving Polus. </p><p>	“We’ve finished our report,” they explained, standing up from the middle table where they’d been sitting with Orange, “And MIRA will likely send more specialized teams to start refurbishing the base.” Their voice seemed to echo around the cafeteria. </p><p>	“People are going to live here again?” Brown’s disbelief was audible. They sat with White, Cyan, Pink and Yellow at one of the cafeteria’s side tables. Black was sitting at the same table, though a few feet away from the others. </p><p>	“Well, it is a good research base, I suppose…” Blue stole a piece of dried fruit from Green’s bowl. Their partner responded by flicking a napkin at them. </p><p>	“We’re leaving?” Lime blinked their wide eyes. “Are my parents coming?” They, Crimson and Lavender were sitting at one of the tables near to the one White sat at. </p><p>	Everyone else exchanged awkward glances. Finally Lavender whispered something to the smaller child, who nodded and returned to stirring everything on their tray into a weird goop. </p><p>	“Finally, we’ll be off this disaster planet.” Cyan leaned back on the bench they were sitting on, then yelped as they lost their balance. The others chuckled at them as they scrambled back into their seat. </p><p>	“It feels wrong that they’re letting more people come here…” Pink still seemed hesitant. “It’s dangerous.” </p><p>	“Everything about space is dangerous.” Yellow waved a hand dismissively. </p><p>	“Yeah, but getting an axe in the head from someone you thought was your crewmate’s kinda a sucky way to go out,” Brown said, tapping their fork on their tray. Yellow gave them an annoyed glance. </p><p>	“I hope the kids find good homes…” White glanced to where Lavender, Crimson and Lime were sitting. Crimson was laughing at Lime, who had somehow managed to mix all the components of their dinner into a lumpy brownish goop. </p><p>	“They’re young. MIRA’ll find some inconspicuous colony family to adopt them.” Pink used their fork to slice a vaguely potato-looking vegetable in half. </p><p>	“What’s it like, growing up in a colony?” White asked nobody in particular. </p><p>	“Awful when you’re an orphan.” Brown let out a laugh that probably was only partially genuine. “Trust me.” </p><p>	“Oh- I’m sorry-,” White began, but Brown shrugged off their sympathy. </p><p>	“Don’t worry about it. Some colonies are decent, but there’re always the sucky ones.” </p><p>	“I always wanted to grow up in a colony as a kid.” Cyan had a dreamy look on their face. “Ever since I learned about them.”</p><p>	“Huh, I never cared.” Yellow checked their nails. “Earth is fine.”</p><p>	White couldn’t help but chuckle a little at their crewmate’s nonchalance. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	The next day was a rush of the crewmates making sure the ship was ready for takeoff. Black mostly lingered in Electrical, not really wanting to get caught up in the bustle of the crewmates hurrying around. Red was rushing everyone, popping their head into every room seemingly every ten minutes, and there wasn’t even any time to talk to White. Black frowned to themself. They’d made a habit of trying to head to the communications room once or twice a day, making small talk with White and seeing how Lavender, Crimson and Lime were adjusting to life on a ship full of strangers. But White surely had their hands full with whatever duties Red was assigning them. </p><p>	Black glanced over the list of tasks Red had messaged them earlier in the day. They’d already finished their once-over of the electrical room, and now were to make sure the connections and energy flow was stable in all the other rooms. </p><p>	<i>At least I’ll have an excuse to chat with White now.</i> </p><p>	They headed out of the room and down the hall to the lower engine room. Brown hurried past them, a fuel container in their hands.</p><p>	“Hey, Black!” The crewmate saluted jokingly as they hurried by, nearly dropping their fuel. Black raised their hand in a small wave. </p><p>	They continued around the ship, working their way from the lower engine, to Security, to the reactor room, making small talk with the others when Red wasn’t around. Most of the rooms didn’t need any work done on the wiring, so they soon found that they’d gone through most of the ship. The only rooms left to work on were Communications and Storage. </p><p>	Black couldn’t help but feel a flutter in their chest as they approached the communications room. Though they weren’t really supposed to, they appreciated the moments they spent with White. </p><p>	They shook their head to clear it. </p><p>	<i>Why am I so attached to them? I’ll have to kill them sooner or later…</i></p><p>	The thought filled them with a deep sadness for some reason they couldn’t quite place. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Joy rose in White’s chest as Black stepped into the communication room. They’d been working all day- doing menial chores, making sure the communications equipment was all in working order, sending updates to MIRA HQ- and had barely gotten a chance to rest. Now Black was here, their presence bringing White some warm, fuzzy feeling they didn’t get with any of the other crewmates. </p><p>	“How’s it going?” Black asked casually. They held a case of tools and began removing the plate for the electrical wiring in the room. </p><p>	White sighed and leaned back in their chair. “Tiring… There’s a lot to do.” </p><p>	“Mhmm, same here. Where’re the kids? They’re always following you around.”</p><p>	“Uhm, I think they’re in the caf… Probably getting a snack or something.” White watched Black work on the room’s wiring, expertly replacing a fraying wire with a fresh one. They felt like they could watch Black’s hands all day. The way Black worked so efficiently, so carefully… </p><p>	White realized they were staring, and they glanced away, not wanting to make things awkward. Thankfully, Black didn’t notice, being too absorbed in their work. </p><p>	“So- uh… Cyan and I were thinking of having a little gathering in our bunkroom later… And I was wondering if you wanted to come?” White hoped they wouldn’t regret asking. 	</p><p>	<i>Maybe Black doesn’t even like me, they just hang around because I’m the easiest to talk to… They probably won’t accept anyways…</i> White tried to push the worries away as Black paused their work. </p><p>	“A gathering?”</p><p>	White nodded. “Just… Y’know, a few card games and stuff… Maybe some talking…” </p><p>	“Sure.” Black finished screwing the plate covering the room’s wiring back in place. White couldn’t stop themself from grinning. </p><p>	“Really? Uh, I mean… Just meet us in Cyan’s and my room after dinner… We’ll all be there!” They gave Black a thumbs-up as the other crewmate headed for the door. Black glanced back to them, tilting their head to the side as they smiled. A genuine smile, as Black’s dark eyes crinkled as they made eye contact with White. And then they turned, leaving down the hall, and White was left with a lingering sensation of excitement. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Had Red not been heading out of storage towards them, Black might have bounced up and down in delight. <i>White</i> had invited them to a gathering… </p><p>	For a moment they entertained the possibility that maybe, <i>just maybe,</i> White liked them back. They pushed the thought from their head as they entered the storage room. </p><p>	<i>They think of me as a friend at best. I’m just the awkward one of the group, the one who lingers around and doesn’t say much, but they keep me around to joke with…</i> Black shrugged off their disappointment. <i>They’re all going to die anyways.</i> </p><p>	They couldn’t shrug off their dread.</p><p>	As Black began unscrewing the screws of the plate covering the wiring for the storage room, someone tapped them on their shoulder, nearly making them drop their screwdriver. </p><p>	“Black.” Black turned to see Purple. </p><p>	“Three days.” Purple turned and walked away, leaving their words hanging in the air like the dark clouds that churned over Polus. </p><p>	<i>Three days…</i> Black knew exactly what Purple meant. Three days until the two were to begin their sabotages. Three days for the crew to live in peace, in very temporary contentment. 	</p><p>	Crimson ran by, Lavender and Lime on their heels. </p><p>	<i>Three days until they start to taste fear…</i></p><p>	Blue’s voice rang out from somewhere nearby, assuring Green that their injury was healed enough that they didn’t need help recovering from a fall. </p><p>	<i>Three days until they start worrying about more than one injury…</i></p><p>	A white wire stuck out among the others. Black stared at it for a moment, tears welling in their eyes despite themself. </p><p>	<i>Three days until White may be in danger…</i> </p><p>	A tear fell to the floor. Black brushed off their face and tried to focus on their work. </p><p>	<i>Three more days…</i></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Purple is straight up scheming</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0014"><h2>14. A Gathering</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sleepover fluff ;)</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Do you think they’ll come?” Cyan asked with a glance to the door. Of course, they were referring to Black. </p><p>	White sat down on their bed, trying to calm the excitement tingling in their stomach. “Hope so…” </p><p>	The door slid open and White quickly glanced up, but stepping through the doorway were Yellow and Pink, not Black. Both were dressed in their sleepwear, and Yellow was carrying a black pencil bag. </p><p>	“Disappointed?” Pink teased as they saw White’s expression. </p><p>	White covered their mouth. “I- No, I just…”</p><p>	Cyan answered for them. “White’s just waiting for Black.” They shared a knowing glance with Pink and Yellow as the two sat down on the floor. White threw their pillow at Cyan, feeling a small twinge of satisfaction as it hit them square in the face. </p><p>	“Heyyy!” Cyan tossed the pillow back. “No pillow fighting till everyone’s here.” They turned to Pink and Yellow. “What’s in the bag?” </p><p>	Yellow unzipped their pencil bag, revealing a few containers of nail polish.</p><p>	“I should’ve known.” White flopped back onto their bed, sitting bolt upright again when the door slid open a second time. They sighed as they saw it was Brown behind it.</p><p>	“I’m here!” Brown announced, throwing down a heap of pillows. They dived onto the floor, and Yellow protectively pulled back their bag of nail polish. “What’s the tea?”</p><p>	“White’s still waiting for Black,” Cyan blabbed, and White threw the pillow at them again.</p><p>	“Shut up!” </p><p>	Cyan laughed so hard they fell out of their bunk. The others seemed to share their amusement. White sighed and wrapped themself in their blanket, sinking onto the floor as well and rolling next to the wall their bunk was built into. “I give up.” </p><p>	They popped their head out of the downy cocoon as the conversation moved on. </p><p>	“Where’d you get all the pillows?” Pink asked Brown. Indeed, Brown had brought what seemed like an entire linen closet’s worth of pillows. </p><p>	Brown, who was wrapped in their own light blue blanket, shrugged. “They’re all mine. I brought them.” </p><p>	“How’d you convince MIRA to let you do <i>that?</i>” Yellow’s voice held a hint of awe. </p><p>	“Well, these things are ninety percent fluff. Easy to vacuum seal.”</p><p>	White couldn’t help but giggle at that. <i>Leave it to Brown to smuggle an absurd number of pillows onto the ship.</i></p><p>	“So, what’re we doing?” Cyan glanced to the others for input. </p><p>	“Who’s supposed to be in charge of snacks?” Yellow asked, lining up their nail polishes on the floor. </p><p>	“Usually Orange… They’re too busy lately though.” Pink sighed. </p><p>	“I’ll grab something from the food dispenser.” Cyan hopped up and headed out of the room, carefully stepping over Brown’s pillows as they went. </p><p>	“So, White.” White turned to see Brown looking at them. “How <i>did</i> you convince Black to hang out with us?” </p><p>	“Uh, I just asked them,” White responded with a shrug.</p><p>	“Wow, using your powers of seduction, I see.”</p><p>	“I-I just <i>asked</i> them, you idiot!” White wished they still had their pillow so they could fling it at Brown. Instead, they grabbed a random one from Cyan’s bunk and tossed it in Brown’s direction. </p><p>	Brown laughed, holding up a pillow of their own to block it, then began throwing pillows at White. Yellow frowned and sat themself protectively in front of their nail polish, and Pink started throwing Brown’s pillows at both Brown and White. White began lobbing back the fluffy projectiles, though they could tell their aim was a bit skewed. Just as a fuzzy blue pillow left their hand, the door began to open. White could only watch as it sailed forwards and smacked a rather surprised Black in the face. </p><p>	The pillow fight stopped as Black picked up the pillow and studied it for a second. White was about to burst out into a flurry of apologies when Black casually tossed it back to them. </p><p>	“Thanks…” White fought the urge to crawl back under their blankets as Black joined the crewmates sitting on the floor. </p><p>	“Nice move,” Brown managed in between fits of laughter. White bit their lip. </p><p>	<i>What do I say now?</i> They cast a glance at Black. </p><p>	Black was also in their standard-issue grey MIRA sleepwear. Their expression was mild, relaxed even, as they looked around the room. </p><p>	“So… What’re we doing?” they asked, looking to White. </p><p>	“Uhm…” White’s mind went blank. Black’s gaze was so mild yet so… <i>pretty</i>. </p><p>	“Cyan’ll be back with snacks soon,” Pink mentioned, seemingly trying to be helpful. </p><p>	“Great, then I can stop fifth wheeling.” Brown gathered the pillows on the floor around them and flopped back. </p><p>	White glared at them. “What do you mean fifth wheeling? Those two are the only couple here-,” </p><p>	“Just keep telling yourself that,” Brown responded with a smirk. White didn’t know what to say. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p> </p><p>	Black couldn’t say they weren’t excited. Despite the lingering sense of dislike for everyone in the room aside from White, they were trying very hard not to let their excitement show. Yet their anxieties seemed to melt away as they gazed at White, who was very cute when they were flustered. They were trying to make some kind of argument against Brown, who had suggested that White and Black might be a couple. </p><p>	Yet somehow, Black felt as if their animosity towards the crewmates had dulled somehow. After their initial infection, they’d felt only hatred each time someone else spoke. Yet now, their violent intentions towards the others became less prevalent. Of course, these emotions hadn’t extended to White, but Black wondered if their feelings for White had something to do with it. </p><p>	“What’s going on?” </p><p>	Everyone turned to see Cyan at the door. They carried a tray of bowls, each filled with various snacks from the food dispenser. Cyan entered and set the tray down in the middle of the room as Brown began speaking. </p><p>	“Nothing… Just White not admitting to their <i>feelings.</i>” </p><p>	Cyan shrugged. “They’ll come around.” </p><p>	“I am right here.” White angrily tore into a fruit bar. The others each reached for snacks from the tray, and Black joined them, taking a handful of granola. It wasn’t meat, which they still constantly craved, but it was better than nothing. </p><p>	<i>Soon I’ll be able to eat as much meat as I want.</i></p><p>	“So, who wants to play a game?” Yellow’s voice was tainted with mischievous intent. </p><p>	“What game?” Cyan raised their eyebrows as they peeled the wrapping off a fruit bar. </p><p>	“Truth or dare.”</p><p>	Black was right. Yellow was planning something. </p><p>	“I’m in,” Pink agreed with a not-so-subtle glance at Black and White. </p><p>	White sniffed. “You guys better not try anything.” </p><p>	The others exchanged glances. Black was sure that they were going to try something, but they didn’t really mind. </p><p>	<i>What’s the worst they can do anyways?</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“No funny business.” Cyan’s confident decree gave White a sliver of solace. Sure, <i>maybe</i> they wouldn’t mind being dared to kiss Black, or something like that… But who knew if Black felt the same? </p><p>	“Okay, I’m in… Black, you wanna play?” White turned to Black, who was, thankfully, faintly smiling.</p><p>	“Sure.” Black’s casual response made White hope that maybe they weren’t opposed to the whole endeavor. </p><p>	“Great! Everyone’s in. Let’s go! White, Truth or Dare?” Cyan grinned, pointing at White with their fruit bar.</p><p>	“I- Why me?” White winced at the thought of Cyan daring them to do something weird, or even worse, something that might make Black feel awkward. </p><p>	“‘Cause you’re who I choose to ask. Now, Truth or Dare?” </p><p>	White weighed their options. If they chose Truth, they could always lie. But if they chose Dare, they had to go through with whatever they were dared to do.</p><p>	“Truth.” </p><p>	<i>But am I prepared to lie?</i></p><p>	“Okay…” Cyan dragged out the ‘y’. “So, White, how do you feel about…” they paused. White stared at them. </p><p>	<i>If you say what I think you’re going to say, you’re dead.</i></p><p>	“How do you feel about MIRA’s food?” </p><p>	White had to admit, they weren’t expecting that question. </p><p>	“Uh… Most of it sucks, obviously.” White hoped their relief wasn’t audible in their voice. They met Cyan’s eyes. </p><p>	<i>I know what you’re trying to do.</i></p><p>	Cyan returned their gaze, blinking innocently. </p><p>	<i>Whatever.</i></p><p>	White turned to Brown, daring them to dip a fruit bar in ketchup and eat it. Brown ran off to the cafeteria and returned with a little cup of ketchup, then unwrapped a fruit bar. The others leaned in for their reaction as they bit down on what could only be described as a fucking <i>weird</i> combination of foods. 	</p><p>	“Not gonna lie, this is kinda good,” Brown said after they finished chewing. Yellow groaned in disgust as Cyan mentioned that tomatoes were fruits, so it was like putting chocolate frosting on a chocolate cupcake. </p><p>	“Anyways.” Brown set their fruit abomination that White did technically force them to make aside. “White, truth or dare?”</p><p>	“What? Ask one of those two!” White waved their hands at Pink and Yellow, who were practically in each other’s laps. “They’re literally cuddling!” </p><p>	“Nah. I don’t want to encourage their weird sappy bullshit.” </p><p>	“Hey! We’re just cold.” Yellow frowned. “Cyan’s the weird one, they’re taking <i>notes.</i>”</p><p>	Cyan, who indeed had a pad of paper out, shook their head. “Nope. Guess again.” </p><p>	White opted to snatch their notepad instead. </p><p>	“Hey!” Cyan protested, grabbing for it. “You don’t get to see!” </p><p>	“Wha- why?” That just made White want to know what Cyan was working on. They looked at the paper and immediately, heat rose to their cheeks. </p><p>	Written in Cyan’s notepad was a list of “Ways to get Black and White together”. White quickly crumpled the paper up while Cyan wheezed with laughter. They threw the notepad back at Cyan, then made for the door. </p><p>	“I am <i>disposing of this.</i>” White hurried out of the room. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black watched White hurry out of the room. </p><p>	<i>What was that all about?</i> They looked at Cyan, who was heaving with laughter, then to Pink, Yellow and Brown, who seemed similarly confused. </p><p>	As White returned, Black shrugged off the incident as some weird inside joke between White and Cyan. They couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed. </p><p>	<i>Maybe someday White and I will have our own inside jokes?</i></p><p>	They pushed the thought away. There wouldn’t be a ‘someday’ with White.</p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“Where were we?” White asked, shooting a warning glance at Cyan, who had picked up the pad of paper again. </p><p>	“Since White’s not cooperating, I guess I have to ask someone else.” Brown glanced around the room. “Truth or dare, Yellow?” </p><p>	“...Dare…” Yellow answered reluctantly.</p><p>	“Hmm… I would ask you to do something embarrassing, but I’m running out of ketchup. I dare you to go get me some more.” Brown held up their nearly-empty little cup they’d originally had a dollop of ketchup in. </p><p>	“Meh.” Yellow took the cup and headed outside, returning a moment later with the cup half-full of the allegedly tomato-based condiment. </p><p>	The next few rounds were relatively tame. Yellow dared Cyan to ask Red if the ship contained any alcohol, which it did. Cyan returned with a few bottles of alcohol from some strange brand nobody had heard of. Unsurprisingly, everyone drank. Surprisingly, Yellow fell asleep within a half hour of the game beginning. Another hour or so passed, and the others were evidently beginning to grow tired as well. Cyan had retreated into their bunk, though they still actively participated in the game, Pink had curled up with Yellow, their eyelids drooping, though Brown was perky as ever.</p><p>	“Aaand for my next victim…” Brown gazed around the room. ‘Victim’ was a fairly accurate way to phrase things, considering Brown had already asked Cyan what their most embarrassing moment was and dared Pink to paint one of Yellow’s nails a random color. “White. Truth or dare?”</p><p>	White felt a flash of confidence, possibly from the alcohol. “Dare,” they responded, meeting Brown’s eyes. </p><p>	Brown grinned. “Okay then. I dare you… To sit in Black’s lap.”</p><p>	Immediately, heat rose to White’s cheeks. Not just from the alcohol, either. They glanced to Black, whose face was of course masked in a facade of indifference. White could’ve sworn that they detected something else flashing in Black’s eyes, though.</p><p>	“Uh- I… Okay, I guess…” White crawled over to Black and, trying not to make a big deal of the whole thing, gently lowered themself onto Black’s lap. </p><p>	<i>They’re so warm…</i> White couldn’t stop the thought from rising in their mind. Tenderness bubbled in their chest as Black carefully brought a hand to their back, supporting them. </p><p>	“Thanks…” White murmured, fixing their eyes on the floor. They were enveloped by Black’s comforting warmth, yet they didn’t want to meet their fellow crewmate’s eyes, lest Black see the awkwardness that must be evident in White’s eyes. </p><p>	“Aww. You two are so cute.” Brown sat back, evidently pleased with their matchmaking scheme. White couldn’t even protest. Being held by Black just felt so <i>nice,</i> and they finally had an excuse to be close to Black. The worry still burned in their mind that Black might not want to be this close, though, and they instinctively looked to Black for any indication of discomfort. </p><p>	To their surprise- and, White had to admit, joy- Black was <i>smiling.</i> Their lips curved upwards slightly, painting the most beautiful visage of satisfaction upon their face. </p><p>	“You good? We can probably, you know…” Black shrugged one shoulder in a replacement for a word. </p><p>	“I…” White couldn’t find the words to express their feelings. Instead, they snuggled closer to Black, and the other crewmate leaned into them. “This is nice…” </p><p>	Black responded with a nod. White closed their eyes, hoping to cherish the moment. They were being <i>held,</i> and by Black of all people… </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black wrapped their arms around White. The crewmate responded with a small noise of satisfaction that, in the moment, was sweeter to Black than they imagined human flesh ever would be. Everything around them melted away in that perfect instant. </p><p>	Then Purple’s words came rushing back to them and they barely stopped themself from flinching.</p><p>	<i>Three days…</i> </p><p>	Black gazed down at White. If they really only had three more days to spend with the crewmate, then they were going to make it count.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0015"><h2>15. What Are We?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The morning after the group's gathering, White questions their relationship with Black.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>White woke up on the floor of the bunkroom they shared with Cyan. They were momentarily confused by the arm that draped over them, until they realized whose it was. </p><p>	<i>Black.</i></p><p>	White turned to see that Black was still asleep, their soft, rhythmic breaths an indication of their state of wakefulness. They took the opportunity to take in Black’s face- Black’s long, soft lashes, their lightly tanned skin, the way their lips were parted ever so slightly in their sleep… </p><p>	<i>That’s enough of that.</i></p><p>	Pushing a few mature thoughts from their head, White rolled away from Black and sat up, inciting a sleepy murmur from the other crewmate. </p><p>	The room was gradually filling with light as the Skeld entered its daytime mode, which meant that it had to be around 08:00 Skeld time. Around White, the others all seemed to still be sleeping soundly, despite the fact that everyone except Cyan was on the bunkroom’s floor. </p><p>	White would have loved to curl up next to Black and sleep for another hour or so, but their thoughts became crowded once again with the implications of doing so. What if Black woke up and was confused as to why White was suddenly cuddling them? What if Black didn’t remember the previous night on account of the alcohol? What if they thought White was being creepy, or weird? </p><p>	White shrugged off their thoughts as they stood up, taking one last glance at Black, who still appeared to be sleeping. </p><p>	<i>It would be so nice to cuddle with them again…</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black waited until the door had opened and closed before opening their eyes. White was gone now, gone off to do their morning routine. Perhaps Black should be doing the same, but they’d been occupied with keeping White warm. In truth, they’d awoken a few times during the night, but with White so close to them, they couldn’t bring themself to retreat to their own bunkroom. </p><p>	Now, without White, the space next to them felt oddly empty. Black let out a small sigh and sat up, gathering up their blanket. It was still warm. </p><p>	They went about their morning routine as usual, trying to dissipate the sense of impending doom that seemed to fill the air. Seemingly invisible to the other crewmates, it permeated each nook and cranny of every room, a heavy cloud laden with guilt. Guilt that Black couldn’t warn White as to what was about to happen. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	The cafeteria was quiet as White settled down with their tray at one of the side tables. At another table, Green and Blue were also awake, yawning as they sipped their coffee. White figured that Red and Orange must be in Admin or something, making sure the ship had launched correctly. </p><p>	White was soon joined by Cyan, who was smiling as they set their tray down. </p><p>	“Soooo…” Cyan leaned closer to White. “Was it nice?” They waggled their eyebrows in an almost cartoonish fashion. </p><p>	“Was what nice?” </p><p>	“Y’know. Sleeping with Black.”</p><p>	“I- You don’t have to say it like <i>that!</i>” White hid their face in their hands. </p><p>	Cyan laughed as they stirred their cereal. “You two did fall asleep holding each other.” </p><p>	“It… wasn’t serious or anything. It’s not like they like me back.” White ran through the list of reasons that Black probably didn’t like them. Black was more mature than them, Black was clearly a loner, why out of everyone on the ship would Black like <i>them?</i></p><p>	“White. You are an <i>idiot.</i>” Cyan’s bluntness made White look up in surprise.</p><p>	“Huh?” </p><p>	“Of course they like you.” Cyan’s tone was tinted with exasperation. “Do you not see the way they look at you?” </p><p>	“I… I don’t know… I don’t want to jump to conclusions,” White muttered, glancing around the cafeteria. Thankfully, there was no sign of Black, and Blue and Green appeared to be too involved in their own conversation to pay attention to what Cyan and White were discussing. </p><p>	“White, I want to grab you by the shoulders and shake you. Black’s whole demeanor changes around you. They’re <i>nicer,</i> and they look at you with such longing in their eyes it’s disgusting. <i>Please ask them out already.</i>”</p><p>	White was left speechless. In truth, they hadn’t noticed anything off about how Black behaved around them, but maybe it was because they were usually so absorbed in making sure they weren’t acting odd around Black.</p><p>	“Cyan. What’s going on?” </p><p>	Both Cyan and White turned to find Orange approaching their table. As usual, Bob trailed behind them, letting out happy mechanical noises as it rolled to a stop beside its favorite human. </p><p>	Cyan let out a sigh that could be described as nothing short of world-weary. “Just trying to convince White that they and Black are a good match. You know, the usual.” </p><p>	Orange took a seat on White’s other side and leaned an elbow on the table, facing White and Cyan. “Maybe you should just let things play out naturally.” </p><p>	“Not gonna happen. You know how these two keep dancing around each other,” Cyan complained.</p><p>	“Why are you so invested in my love life?” White asked, from a place of both annoyance and genuine curiosity. </p><p>	Cyan shrugged. “It’s interesting.” </p><p>	Bob chirped, and Orange glanced down to the little robot. “Oops, Bob’s almost out of battery. I forgot to charge it last night…” They stood up, and it took all of White’s willpower not to grab their hand. </p><p>	“Orange… Please, don’t leave me with this shipping-obsessed maniac.”</p><p>	“Sorry White, but Bob is dearer to my heart than whatever relationship nonsense Cyan’s trying to push you into.” Orange turned and led Bob away, leaving White’s mind a storm of protest. Okay, maybe they had a crush on Black, but Cyan was way too eager to convince them Black would reciprocate their feelings. </p><p>	“Cyan… How can you be so sure Black even likes me back?” White turned back to Cyan, who looked up from their cereal. </p><p>	“I just know these things,” Cyan replied, tapping their temple with a confident grin. </p><p>	White slumped down on the cafeteria table bench. “Sounds iffy.” </p><p>	“If you really want to know what Black thinks about you, just ask them yourself.”</p><p>	White looked up to see Black emerging from the locker room and heading for the meal dispenser. A sudden surge of anxiety overtook them and they grabbed Cyan’s arm. </p><p>	“If you say a single thing about us being together, I- I’ll-,”</p><p>	“Don’t worry about it.” Cyan shrugged them off. “Secrets are fun to keep.” They made a lip-zipping motion as Black began walking towards their table. </p><p>	“Morning, Black,” White casually said as Black joined them. “Uh- Nice breakfast!” They cringed internally the second the words came out of their mouth. <i>Seriously? Couldn’t I have complimented something else that didn’t make it seem like I was judging their eating habits or something?</i></p><p>	Black merely nodded, evidently not seeing Cyan cover their mouth to prevent a laugh from escaping. “Thanks, you too…” </p><p>	White desperately searched for a topic to bring up before the conversation dissolved into stale awkwardness. “I haven’t actually tried MIRA’s scrambled eggs… Are they as bad as the rest of the food?”</p><p>	“Guess we’ll find out,” Black replied, taking a bite of eggs that looked concerningly desaturated. They made a face that looked like a muted grimace. </p><p>	“Nope. Still trash,” they said after swallowing. </p><p>	Not long after Black arrived, Brown, Pink and Yellow joined the table. They seemed to be acting normal aside from their weird insistence on treating Black and White like some kind of item. Neither White nor Black bothered to correct them, but the question rang in White’s mind. </p><p>	<i>What are we?</i></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0016"><h2>16. Countdown</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Time is ticking, though Black finds themself more drawn to White than ever.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Hi, Black!” A tap on Black’s shoulder made them jump up and whirl around. They relaxed upon finding out it was just Brown, who was now looking at them strangely. </p><p>	“Ya good?” Brown asked. </p><p>	Black nodded, trying not to let their anxiety reach their facial expressions. Brown didn’t need to know they felt especially tense today. There were two days left, two precious days of solace for White and the rest of the crew. </p><p>	“Oh, I see what it is.” Brown’s face filled with amused understanding, and Black tensed. </p><p>	<i>They can’t possibly know.</i></p><p>	“You still don’t want to admit that you and White are a thing.” Brown’s declaration wasn’t what Black had been expecting, but it still made their heart jump, in a different way. </p><p>	“Y-yeah, sure…” Black played along. <i>At least they don’t suspect me of anything…</i></p><p>	“Don’t worry, I’ll tell them for you,” Brown teased, then after Black didn’t respond, continued. “Okay, okay. I’m not gonna do that. But I came in here to ‘cause Orange told me to ask whether you’re done downloading that data yet.”</p><p>	Black glanced at their tablet, which was plugged into a port on one of the machines in the electrical room. “Almost.” </p><p>	“Cool, bring it to Orange when you’re done.” Brown pranced out of the room and Black watched them leave, an odd feeling settling in the crewmate’s wake. </p><p>	<i>They’re so carefree, as usual… They don’t know what’s coming…</i></p><p>	Finishing the download, Black headed to the admin office to upload the data into the admin panel. Orange and Red were there, and they greeted Black politely as usual before turning back to whatever document they were scrolling through on Red’s tablet. </p><p>	The data had been Black’s last task of the day, and they headed to Communications afterwards, hoping White was also done with their work. </p><p>	They entered and found White crouched with Lavender and Crimson in front of what looked to be a tower of dominoes. Lime was seated at the communications desk, scribbling away on some scratch paper. </p><p>	“Black!” Crimson waved an arm, which knocked into the domino tower, causing it to topple over. </p><p>	“Crimson!” Lavender exclaimed, drawing back their hand as if they were about to smack the other child.</p><p>	White laid a hand on Lavender’s shoulder and gave them a stern look, and Lavender sniffed and retracted their hand, though they shot a dirty look at Crimson. Crimson crinkled up their face similarly as they started stacking a few dominoes again.</p><p>	Black took a seat on the floor near them. “What’re you guys doing?” </p><p>	“Just… stacking dominoes. Out of boredom, y’know?” White fiddled with a domino as they spoke. “You done with tasks?”</p><p>	Black nodded. “Yep.” They picked up a domino, then set it down upright next to another one. White and Lavender joined in the building, and soon a sizable tower was constructed, probably over half a foot tall. </p><p>	Spying a domino lying not too far from the tower’s base, Black reached for it, only for their hand to brush White’s. They both glanced up in surprise, neither expecting the other. Finally, White snatched the domino and carefully set it atop the tower as Black picked up a different domino. Even then, White’s touch still seemed to linger on their hand, and they allowed themself a small smile. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	The next day went similarly. Black finished their tasks by the early afternoon, then wandered over to the communications room to join White in whatever they were doing. This day, however, was different- the foreboding hanging over Black was almost suffocating. They had to try very hard not to snap at Brown when the other crewmate accidentally bumped into them when moving a box in Storage. </p><p>	Thankfully, they made it to the communications room without losing their temper. As usual, conversation sparked between them and White, who explained that Cyan had offered to teach the children some friendship bracelet weaving, hence their absence.</p><p>	Then, White unexpectedly took Black’s hand and squeezed it. </p><p>	“You seem stressed,” White said, and though their eyes were warm as usual, their tone held a trace of worry. </p><p>	“I’m just worried,” Black responded. They couldn’t bring themself to lie to White, but they couldn’t tell the whole truth either. “Just a bit of anxiety. I’ll get over it.”</p><p>	“You sure?” White asked gently. They’d interlaced their fingers with Black’s, and their touch was so warm, so comforting… Black didn’t want to let go of their hand. </p><p>	Black forced a smile. “Being here with you… definitely helps.”</p><p>	White blinked in surprise, and they raised their free hand to their mouth in an almost instinctive gesture to cover the smile that was spreading across their face. </p><p>	“I’m glad to hear that,” they managed, and Black couldn’t help but smile as well. </p><p>	<i>They’re so cute... </i> The thought twisted Black’s heart as much as it warmed it. <i>I’ll have to kill them sometime…</i></p><p>	Black instead tried to focus on chatting with White. They tried to focus on how nice it was to be alone with them, to hold their hand, but the knowledge that the ship sabotage would begin the next day pecked at their mind. <i>One more day…</i></p><p>	“So… I wanted to ask you something,” White said suddenly, the words tumbling out. Black met their eyes, finding that White’s eyes were wide but determined. They had such pretty brown eyes, a color that was both warm and deep even as White’s eyes reflected the harsh fluorescent lighting of the ship. </p><p>	“Go on,” Black encouraged them, genuinely curious as to what White had to say. A worry wormed its way into their stomach, an irrational fear-<i>Maybe White suspects me as an imposter</i>- but they knew it was irrational. </p><p>	White hesitated, though they didn’t break eye contact. “I… wanted to ask…” They took a breath. “Do you like me?” </p><p>	Black didn’t know what to say for a moment. White’s straightforwardness took them by surprise, and they contemplated a lie. Lying would be so much easier for the both of them, especially for Black, as pushing their feelings away would make killing White a simpler task. 	</p><p>	But they didn’t lie. They stared into White’s trusting eyes and spoke the truth. </p><p>	“Yes.”</p><p>	Their stomach churned. Maybe they should have lied. Maybe White really didn’t like them, and in a minute Cyan and Brown and Pink and Yellow would pop out of some hiding spot and laugh at Black for being an idiot for thinking White might like them back. </p><p>	But White’s expression faded to relief, then joy, and they suddenly embraced Black tightly. </p><p>	“I like you too,” White murmured. Their embrace was so warm, Black swore they could feel it through the insulated suit. Black put their arms around White as well, holding the crewmate close. They wanted to keep them here forever, safe in their arms, and every worry seemed to rush away while White was once again that close.</p><p>	The moment they pulled away, however, the familiar thought resurfaced in Black’s mind. </p><p>	<i>One more day…</i></p><p>	They pushed it away in favor of talking to White. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	White couldn’t stop themself from asking the question aloud. </p><p>	“What are we?” </p><p>	They gazed into Black’s eyes as they did. Black’s eyes were so soft, so understanding…</p><p>	“Hmm…” Black glanced upwards as they thought. “...A thing? An item?” </p><p>	White smiled. A warm bubbly feeling rose within them, remaining as they continued making conversation with Black. The two of them basked in the comfortable company of each other for a while before heading to the cafeteria hand in hand. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	After dinner, Black noticed Purple motioning to them, so they pretended they had some menial chore to do in the electrical room. </p><p>	The tension rose as they slipped into a vent and crawled forwards, knowing they’d meet Purple soon. They had no idea what Purple was planning, or how soon they were going to kill a crewmate. </p><p>	“Hello, Black.” Purple appeared from around a corner up ahead. Like Black, they weren’t wearing their helmet, so the malice in their eyes was visible. Black almost shuddered at the sight of it. </p><p>	“Hey. So we start tomorrow?” Black asked, trying to keep their cool. </p><p>	“Yes. Sabotage a few things, get everyone scared.”</p><p>	“But… Are you sure we have to do this?” Black felt a rush as soon as they asked the question. Purple’s eyes immediately narrowed.</p><p>	“What do you mean? Are <i>you</i> scared?” Purple didn’t wait for a response before continuing. “If you want to be able to eat properly, we’ll need to kill the crew, Black. You want their pain. <i>I</i> want their pain.”</p><p>	Black could only nod. They wished they had White’s or Red’s charisma, maybe they could’ve convinced Purple to delay the plan some more… </p><p>	Purple kept talking, detailing a plan to spend two days sabotaging things before going after some crewmates. “Two days of sabotage will be enough to rile everyone up, without giving them enough time to come up with a solid plan to get help.”</p><p>	“Got it.” Black turned and retreated down the vent, though their mind was a storm of thoughts. The most prominent were questions on how they could protect White. </p><p>	<i>Surely Purple wouldn’t kill them, they probably consider White a good alibi for me or something… But that won’t stop them from killing others…</i> Black shook their head as they climbed out of the vent. <i>Stop trying to protect White. They’d hate me if they found out I was an imposter…</i></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0017"><h2>17. Sabotaged</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>An emergency is called in the middle of the night.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>White awoke to the buzzing of their tablet. They reached over to turn off their alarm when they realized the screen was red. </p><p>	<i>An emergency meeting? At 2am?</i></p><p>	Cyan groaned as they sat up. “Wha-Is that the meeting alarm?”</p><p>	White nodded, dismissing the alert from their tablet. Cyan did the same, and the two groggily wandered out into the hallway. </p><p>	“Why is it so dark?” White muttered, glancing around. The hall between the bunkrooms and the locker room was pitch black aside from the glowing of the crewmates’ tablets. Usually, the Skeld would be put in a sort of night cycle between the hours of 20:00 and 5:00, where the lights dimmed, but still slightly illuminated the corridors enough to see. </p><p>	“I don’t know, but I don’t like this.” </p><p>	Around them, the other members of the crew were emerging from their rooms as well, muttering discontentedly as they shuffled towards the cafeteria. </p><p>	“Wait- I’ve got to check on the kids,” White told Cyan, then hurried towards the bunkroom where the three children slept. “I’ll be with you soon.” They slipped by a few sleepy crewmates and made their way to the kids’ bunkroom. </p><p>	As expected, it was dark inside, but someone sat up as soon as White entered. </p><p>	“What’s going on?” Lavender’s voice was sleepy but anxious. “It’s so dark…”</p><p>	“Nothing, nothing,” White assured them. “I think the lights went out a bit. Are you okay with staying here with Crimson and Lime?”</p><p>	“Yeah…”</p><p>	“Okay. I’ll tell you in the morning if anything happens.” White turned to leave. Lavender responded with a sleepy murmur that was almost muted by the whooshing of the bunkroom’s doors sliding shut. </p><p>	They made their way into the cafeteria, where everyone was gathered around the middle table. An emergency lantern was set in the center of it, illuminating the worried faces of the crewmates. Blue and Green were huddled together, muttering something. Purple, for once, wasn’t occupied with working on their tablet, but instead was looking around the room, likely not used to it being so dark. Yellow was boredly listening to Brown, Cyan and Pink talk about what might be happening. Orange and Red were watching the crew, with Orange typing something into their tablet. Black gave White a small wave as they approached.</p><p>	White took a seat between Black and Pink, and Red cleared their throat to silence the chattering crew. </p><p>	“So, I do apologize for calling you all here at such an… hour.” Their tone was no less commanding than usual, but there was a certain uncertainty about it that unnerved White. </p><p>	“Yeah, it’s fucking two in the morning, what’s going on?” Brown muttered, causing nervous laughter to echo around the table. </p><p>	“I was getting to that. You all have noticed that the lights are out, haven’t you?” Red motioned around the room. Most of the cafeteria was bathed in darkness, and White glanced around at the eerie scene. The shadows cast by the lantern onto the floor and tables were stretched and could even be called creepy if one looked at them too long. </p><p>	“Blue and Green woke up and noticed all the lights were out. We’ve found that both the hall lights and individual room lights are failing to function, and when I went to the electrical room to work on the switchboard, I found this.” Red turned on their tablet and turned it so that the crewmates sitting at the table could see the screen. White flinched when they saw the picture. A panel of a machine had been removed and the wires inside had been hacked at. </p><p>	Besides White, Black swore under their breath. White squeezed their hand, trying to be reassuring. </p><p>	“We’ve got an imposter on board.” Red’s tone was definitely darker than usual. White couldn’t stop themself from flinching, and Cyan audibly sucked in a breath. Then Black put an arm around them, gently yet protectively, and White leaned into the other crewmate’s warmth. They wanted to close their eyes, and just fall asleep, and wake up to all this being some kind of bad dream. But that was going to be difficult with Red already barking out orders to the others. </p><p>	“Black, Brown, you two work on the wires. Cyan, what’s the policy for this kind of situation?” </p><p>	“Uh- I think we’re supposed to enact Emergency Level 2, Captain.” Cyan scrambled to turn on their tablet. They opened a document and started scrolling through it. “Emergency Level 2 guidelines state to use a buddy system, wear helmets as often as possible, and place someone in the security office.”</p><p>	Red nodded. “Okay, buddy system… Black and Brown, you’re both general tech, so I’m putting you in charge of any quick repairs. White, you and Orange are in charge of communications. Yellow and Purple, be ready to deal with any injuries, and prepare to scan everyone. Cyan and Pink, you’re in charge of security. Green and Blue, make sure all weapons are secured. Everyone is in charge of reporting any sabotage you come across.”</p><p>	Red then dismissed them, and Black’s arm slipped from around White’s shoulders as they left. A strange emptiness was left in their wake, a coldness where Black had held White. Still, White joined Orange and the two began heading to the communications room. </p><p>	“Have you dealt with imposters before?” White asked them.</p><p>	Orange, who was holding a flashlight to light their path, didn’t immediately respond. They tilted their head to the side, as if thinking, before they spoke. </p><p>	“Just one. Though I’ve heard all the stories of what they can do.” </p><p>	“Creepy… How’d you catch the one?”</p><p>	Orange paused at the doorway to the communications room. White looked up to them, expecting a thoughtful expression, but felt a jolt when they realized Orange’s eyes were widened with shock. </p><p>	White stepped forward to see past the door frame and froze. Orange’s flashlight threw light on the communications desk, but instead of being neat and organized as White had left it, it was in disarray. Orange shone their flashlight around the room, revealing that several machines had been broken and now lay on the floor. The bookshelves were untouched, as they didn’t contain any technology, but the computer monitor that usually displayed incoming messages and data was shattered, and wires lay limp from where they’d been ripped out of the wall. </p><p>	“This isn’t good…” Orange muttered, and through their panic, White couldn’t help but think it was a severe understatement. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“Maybe we should be putting on our suits or something… Do you know how long we’re going to be awake?” Brown tilted their head to the side, and Black just shrugged in response. Brown continued chattering as the two made their way through storage, then abruptly exclaimed “Ow!” as they whacked their knee on a crate. Black frowned as they continued towards the electrical room. They’d known Purple was going to do something, but this seemed almost excessive. </p><p>	<i>What’s the point of ripping out a bunch of wires if it’s night time anyways? Was their only motive to put people on edge? To inconvenience them?</i></p><p>	“We’re here,” Brown announced. “Where’s that flashlight…” They used their tablet as a light as they dug through a toolbox on the floor. Black waited a few feet away, unsure of what to do. Of course, they could probably start fixing the lights now, since their vision had been much improved by the parasite, but Brown would obviously find it suspicious how easy it was for them to see what they were doing using only their tablet’s glow. </p><p>	“Found it!” Brown exclaimed triumphantly, flicking on a flashlight. They shone it around the room, and audibly let out a sigh of relief. “‘Kay, looks like there’s only one sabotaged panel… Black, do you mind holding this light while I work on it?”</p><p>	“Mhmm.” Black took the flashlight and followed Brown to the sabotaged panel. Not a minute later, Brown’s tablet started buzzing incessantly.</p><p>	Brown turned on their tablet, opening the group chat which seemed to be the source of all the notifications they were getting. Black read over their shoulder, their heart sinking as they did. </p><p>[Orange] We have discovered more sabotage in the communications room.. Not sure how long itll take to fix<br/>[Red] That’s not good. Let me know when you’ve determined the extent of the damage.<br/>[Yellow] the scanner is also not looking good (attached image)<br/>[Cyan] 2 security cameras are offline fuckkkkkkk<br/>[Red] This is not good. Any other news?<br/>[Brown] Electrical damage should take 20min or so to fix hOpefully<br/>[Red] Anyone who needs help, state what you need and where you are.<br/>[Yellow] medbay, someone who can look at the scanner plz come</p><p>	“Black, you should go to Medbay,” Brown suggested. “I’ll work on the lights, and the scanner’s more important anyways.”</p><p>	“Sure…” Black handed Brown the flashlight and turned to grab their own. They didn’t really want to be near Purple, who had apparently done <i>all of this,</i> but it wasn’t like they had a choice. As they searched through the toolbox for another flashlight, they noticed something.</p><p>	“Brown, I think we’re missing a hammer.”</p><p>	“Fuck, really?” Brown joined them at the toolbox. “That must’ve been what was used to do the damage the others are reporting…” Black left the other crewmate to look through the tools.</p><p>	The halls were just as dark as the electrical room. Black caught snatches of Cyan and Pink’s conversation as they passed the security room, though they didn’t stop to listen. </p><p>	“Black, thank gosh you’re here.” Purple told them as soon as Black stepped into Medbay. “Something happened to the scanner.” Their concern sounded so genuine, Black might have actually thought they were worried had they not known Purple was an imposter. </p><p>	“Show me.” Black followed Purple to the corner of the room where Yellow was already freaking out. The scanner was indeed broken- its screen was smashed, wiring was ripped, and miscellaneous parts lay on the floor. </p><p>	“This is so bad, this is so bad,” Yellow was muttering to themself as they frantically typed on their tablet. Black caught a glimpse of their tablet screen and saw they were flipping between conversations, likely telling everyone what had happened. </p><p>	Black knelt down by the scanner, wondering if they even could repair it. They’d never dealt with a broken scanner before, though they certainly knew how the technology worked. </p><p>	“I can try to fix this,” they finally said, “But I’m not sure if I can, or how long it’ll take…” </p><p>	Evidently, their apprehensiveness was well received by Purple, as the other imposter smiled at them for a second before responding. </p><p>	“Oh dear… And we were planning to scan everyone as soon as possible…”</p><p>	“Yeah, not sure how plausible that’s gonna be,” Black responded. They took another good look at the scanner. Several parts would need replacing, and Black wasn’t even sure if the Skeld had spare parts. There was torn wiring, which Black could easily fix, so they decided to start on that first. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Red and Orange were not happy. </p><p>	Obviously, neither was White, but they’d never seen Red or Orange look so… <i>upset</i> before. They were both talking, Red much louder than usual, and Orange clearly more nervous by the way they kept shifting their weight. </p><p>	“This is horrible. Whoever did this knows what they’re doing,” Red stated with a glance at the communications equipment. The lantern they’d placed in the middle of the communications room gave the whole room a creepy vibe, as the shadows cast by the equipment on the floor and the inhabitants of the room seemed to dance upon the walls. </p><p>	Orange, who was in the process of screwing something in, nodded. “We’ll need to establish exactly where everyone was for the last few hours.” </p><p>	“That’ll be impossible. Anyone can just say they were sleeping, because that’s what normal people do at <i>one in the fucking morning.</i>” Red continued pacing in front of the door, rubbing their temples. “And if Cyan’s right, whoever did this covered their tracks well. They fucked with the cameras beforehand.” </p><p>	White did not want to be here. They sat next to Orange, kneeling in front of the broken equipment. <i>It’s not like I’m doing anything, why can’t I just go back to sleep?</i></p><p>	Red finally stopped talking about all the problems with their current situation and settled down in the communications chair, turning on their tablet and typing on it. A few minutes later, they announced that they were going to go to the security room, and left. </p><p>	“Well, now that they’re gone…” Orange’s tone was tainted with relief. “Did you see anything… off?” </p><p>	“Nope. I was sleeping,” White responded. <i>And I wish I still was.</i></p><p>	“Ah. Understandable.” Orange continued tinkering with the equipment. “Apparently, Green woke up to use the bathroom and found all the lights off. I was woken after Red, and we found the electrical room in… less than good state.”</p><p>	“Huh.” White continued to watch Orange work. </p><p>	<i>Whoever did this took probably less than fifteen minutes to do it, but it might take hours to repair all their damage…</i></p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0018"><h2>18. Crafts and Conversation</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Black and White spend some time together with the kids.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Black was able to fix a few parts of the medbay scanner, but it soon became apparent that certain parts of it were too damaged to function. They’d need to stop somewhere for replacement parts. </p><p>	After relaying the information to Red, Black headed for the door of Medbay. The lights had been turned on almost an hour ago thanks to Brown, though the ship was still in its night mode. </p><p>	Purple stopped them. “Wait.”</p><p>	Black turned around to face them. They were the only two in Medbay, so it was safe to talk for the time being. </p><p>	“You need to stop White from following you around so much.”</p><p>	“Why? I thought you said they were a good-,”</p><p>	Purple cut them off. “Yeah, they’re good as long as they’re not in the way. And now, they’re getting in the way.” Purple was frowning as they spoke. </p><p>	<i>Not a good sign…</i></p><p>	“I… I don’t know how,” Black admitted. In truth, they knew they could push White away, but they didn’t <i>want</i> to. </p><p>	Purple sighed, a breath of air let out slowly as if they were trying to prevent themself from bursting out in a yell. “Just stay away from them.”</p><p>	“Are you going to do something?” Anxiety spiked in Black’s chest.</p><p>	“Depends if they get in the way or not,” Purple responded casually, as if they were discussing some mundane thing and not the ending of someone’s life. </p><p>	Black nodded, worried that if they spoke they might say something that would lead Purple to think White would be a good target. They left quickly, head buzzing with thoughts. </p><p>	Black had tried to avoid thinking about whether they’d have to kill White or not. Now Purple had almost directly threatened White, and Black didn’t really know what to think. They were an imposter, could they even be considered human any more? </p><p>	All this thinking was making their head hurt. </p><p>	<i>I want to go to sleep…</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“I feel like my whole sense of time is skewed now,” White remarked with a yawn. They’d woken up for the second time that day a few minutes earlier, around 08:00, and were now sitting at one of the cafeteria tables with Cyan and Brown. </p><p>	“I feel like time’s the least of our worries,” Cyan responded, exhaustion creeping into their voice. “There’s still so much stuff that’s been sabotaged…”</p><p>	It was true. White had gone to sleep after Orange had managed to repair some equipment enough to get a signal through, well after 04:00. From what they’d heard, the medbay scanner and two cameras were still non functional.</p><p>	“Morning, y’all.” Black set down their tray next to White’s and leaned their head against White’s shoulder. </p><p>	“You good? You seem tired,” White said, gently stroking their hair. The other crewmate leaned into them, though White was sure their eyelids were drooping more than usual. </p><p>	“...Fine, just worried, y’know,” Black murmured. </p><p>	“Yep. There’s so much to fix on this ship all the sudden. Whoever the imposter is, I’m gonna beat their ass for making us do all this,” Brown complained, smacking the table for emphasis. </p><p>	“I’d help you,” Cyan proclaimed, though with a glance at them, White saw that they looked much more tired than usual. Something like pity pricked White’s chest- they never had to deal with all this as a firsty, but here Cyan was, already experiencing an imposter’s sabotage on their first mission. </p><p>	Black suddenly stiffened against White’s shoulder, and White followed their gaze to the hallway to Medbay, where Purple had just emerged from. </p><p>	“Something wrong?” White asked Black quietly, and Black shrugged. </p><p>	“Nothing…”</p><p>	“You know you can tell me,” White assured them. Black paused for a moment. </p><p>	“Just Purple being really neurotic about the scanner. Lots of stuff’s broken, y’know?” </p><p>	“True…” White absentmindedly ran their fingers through Black’s hair. They wished they could help somehow, but they had no background in actually fixing things besides some basic communications equipment. 	</p><p>	They turned their attention back to Cyan and Brown, who were still expressing their will to take out the imposter. Cyan seemed especially annoyed about having to suddenly go through a bunch of policy handbooks. </p><p>	“Don’t you mean doing your job?” White teased.</p><p>	“<i>Maybe.</i>” Cyan huffed. “I haven’t gotten used to working this much, y’know?” They crossed their arms and slumped in their seat. </p><p>	Just then, Orange hurried in to inform White it was their turn to man the communications room. Reluctantly, White left the table. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Purple didn’t sabotage anything else for the rest of the day. </p><p>	Well, neither did Black, and they didn’t intend to. Suddenly, an atmosphere of anxious crewmates was much more stressful than enjoyable. Black had initially enjoyed the negative emotions of their uninfected peers, but now it all just seemed <i>sad.</i> They longed to go and hug White, to comfort them and tell them everything would be okay, but Purple was definitely watching them closely now. </p><p>	Black busied themself with working on fixing the two cameras that had been broken. They sat with Brown in the electrical room, listening to the other crewmate complain about having to do work for once. It was admittedly amusing for the first few minutes, but soon became insufferable. Black debated killing the crewmate, but deep inside knew that they probably wouldn’t be able to even if circumstances were in their favor to do so and get away. Sure, they still craved meat and sure, Brown seemed to be someone who wouldn’t be fit enough to fight off a surprise attack, but Black found themself opposed to the idea of killing the crewmate. </p><p>	<i>What’s wrong with me? Aren’t I supposed to hate them?</i> Black vaguely recalled feelings of hatred for the other crewmates, but couldn’t seem to bring up those same feelings now. Instead, they couldn’t help but see White’s face, twisted with grief at the death of someone they called a friend. </p><p>	<i>I can’t do that to them.</i> </p><p>	Speaking of <i>them,</i> though Black was able to avoid White for most of the day, the crewmate caught them after dinner. </p><p>	“How’re the repairs going?” White asked as Black rinsed a bowl in the sink. </p><p>	“Eh… There’s a lot of damage. We need a lot of replacement parts that we don’t have.”</p><p>	“That sucks.” White’s eyes softened with sympathy. “We’re trying to get clearance from HQ to reroute to a nearby base for scans and supplies, but Red says the nearest base is a week away...” They continued talking as Black dried their hands. </p><p>	Just as White finished detailing their concerns with how the Skeld was to get to help, the kid crew ran up to them. </p><p>	“White!” Crimson waved their arms as they approached, and Black saw the kid had a book in one hand. “I finished it! I read it! On my own!” They held up the book proudly. It was a picture book, clearly MIRA branded due to the logo in the corner, about colonies. </p><p>	“That’s great, I’m proud of you!” White offered the child a high-five. As Crimson slapped White’s palm, Lavender spoke up. </p><p>	“Crim<i>son,</i> put away your tray, lazy.” Lavender dumped their own tray and dishes into the sink as they frowned at Crimson. The latter stuck out their tongue and ran back to their table, nearly knocking over Lime, who was close behind Lavender. </p><p>	“Sorry about them…” White tucked a lock of hair behind their ear, clearly embarrassed by the children's bickering. “It’s hard to find them things to do right now.”</p><p>	“Maybe I could teach them origami?” Black suggested without thinking. Immediately they wanted to slap themself, knowing Purple might take them spending time with White and the kids the wrong way. </p><p>	White immediately brightened. “That’s a great idea! Are you free now?”</p><p>	Black nodded. “How about after we all get into our sleepwear and stuff?”</p><p>	“Sounds good!” White gave them a quick hug then turned to wrangle the children. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Thirty minutes later, the two adults and three children were on the floor of the kids’ bunkroom. White had laid a blanket on the floor, and the crewmates sat in a circle on it as Black removed the lid of a small paper box. </p><p>	Inside the box was a stack of square-shaped papers in a rainbow of colors and patterns. Black told them each to choose a paper. </p><p>	<i>They’re all so pretty,</i> White thought, sifting through the selection. They decided on a nice checkered pattern. </p><p>	Once everyone had picked out their papers, Black chose one for themself then set the box aside, beginning a step-by-step walkthrough on how to fold something they called beginners’ level. White didn’t really agree with them on that, but the instructions were easy enough to follow if not a bit difficult since White didn’t know the terminology. </p><p>	Halfway through, Lime got frustrated, and White suggested they color instead. Lime took to their usual habits of scribbling with their markers while Black continued explaining the project. </p><p>	Crimson soon took to folding something much more simple out of the little origami book that came with the box of paper, though Lavender continued following Black’s instructions.</p><p>	“Uh, Black? I think I did something wrong…” White glanced to their paper, then to Black’s again as they spoke. Their origami definitely looked a bit different from Black’s and Lavender’s. </p><p>	Black scooted closer to them with a chuckle. “Yeah, you might have…” They leaned closer. White handed them their paper. </p><p>	“Oh, I know what you did wrong.” Black began to unfold some of the flaps, holding the paper between them as they did so. White watched, torn between wanting to lay down in Black’s lap and go to sleep and actually wanting to learn origami. </p><p>	But Black wasn’t the best teacher, even as they must have been folding White’s origami slower than necessary in order to be a good example. White rested their head on Black’s shoulder, half-listening to them murmur softly about what they were doing. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“And now an inside reverse fold, and… we’re done,” Black announced, glancing towards White. </p><p>	White merely murmured something into their shoulder as Black placed the completed origami crane on the floor in front of them. </p><p>	<i>Did they just fall asleep?</i></p><p>	Sure enough, White seemed to be somewhere close to sleep. Black gently moved their head into their lap, which had to be a more comfortable position. </p><p>	“Black, look, I finished,” Lavender said, holding out their finished origami. </p><p>	“Great job,” Black told them. It was true, Lavender’s origami looked like it could be a copy of Black’s own finished piece. “Put it somewhere safe, okay?”</p><p>	Lavender bobbed their head up and down. </p><p>	“It’s getting kind of late, you guys should go to bed now,” Black told them. Indeed, Lime was already snoring in the bed they shared with Crimson. </p><p>	Thankfully, the kids got in bed without much whining. Black gently woke White, who sleepily allowed Black to lead them back to their own bunk room. </p><p>	Cyan was still awake in their bunk when Black arrived with White. </p><p>	“They fell asleep already?” Cyan asked as Black pulled the covers over White. </p><p>	Black shrugged a little. “They sorta did back in the other bunkroom…” They paused as Cyan scribbled something on their little notepad. “What’re you writing in there?” </p><p>	Cyan gave a little half-smile. “Just some notes…” </p><p>	With a final glance at White, who was still sleeping peacefully, Black left the room. They retrieved the unused origami materials from the kids’ bunkroom then headed to their own. </p><p>	Thankfully, Brown was asleep when Black entered their shared bunkroom. Black put away their origami materials and turned off the room’s light, getting into bed themself. They fell asleep with the image of White sleeping peacefully in their mind.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0019"><h2>19. Bundles of Wires (and Nerves)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The crew tries to determine who the imposter is.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Black awoke with the warm feeling still lingering in their chest. They’d dreamed of White, and it was a soft dream, hazy yet beautiful. They wanted to write it down so they wouldn’t forget the feeling. </p><p>	They turned on their tablet and opened a blank note, but found the words didn’t come easily, or maybe there were no words to describe their emotions. They left the note blank.</p><p>	Black’s morning went smoothly as expected, despite the tenderness in their mind quickly being snuffed out and replaced by anxiety. </p><p>	<i>Purple is going to kill someone tomorrow.</i></p><p>	The thought echoed in their mind as they sat in the far-too-empty electrical room, tinkering with one of the broken cameras. Nothing else had been broken during the night, likely thanks to the team of two Red had stationed in the security office. Black had to hand it to Red, the captain had their shit together. </p><p>	About an hour before Black usually went to the cafeteria for lunch, a notification popped up on their tablet. It was an alert Red had sent to the main chat, informing all the crewmates they’d be meeting at 12:00 to discuss the “recent events”. </p><p>	<i>Of course. They’re trying to determine who the imposter is.</i></p><p>	Black couldn’t help but smile a bit at the captain’s forethought. They had to have known the imposter wasn’t just on the ship to rip out wires. </p><p>	On the note of wires, Black glanced to their side. A crate sat next to them, its lid off, containing many bundles of wires meant to be used in the repairs. Black dully stared at them for a moment, almost entranced by the overlapping cords. </p><p>	Quick footsteps from the hall snapped them out of their stupor and they returned to their task. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	The middle table was once again crowded with crewmates and trays. Everyone jostled for their space, and the sounds of sliding trays and argumentative words filled the air. </p><p>	Red then ordered everyone to put their helmets on the ground, which freed up enough space at the table for at least everyone’s trays to fit. White let their tablet sit in their lap, seeing as there wasn’t much space on the table even with the helmets relocated. </p><p>	“I’m sure you all know why this meeting was called,” Red began, clasping their hands on the table. They didn’t have a tray in front of them, which was fitting considering how much talking they probably planned to do. </p><p>	“Yeah, because someone’s planning to murder all of us.” Brown’s comment went undebated. White felt relieved that the kids were sitting at one of the farther tables, occupied with playing with their cafeteria food.</p><p>	Orange didn’t let the air grow stale in the wake of what Brown had said. “That’s why we need to figure out who it is.”</p><p>	“Purple, what are the best ways to spot an imposter?” Red asked, turning to the doctor. </p><p>	Purple cleared their throat. “Well, as most of you know, the only provable method is through Medbay scan, which we obviously can’t do right now.” They glanced at their tablet before continuing. “But other symptoms include increased appetite, behavioral changes, and enhanced physical abilities.” </p><p>	“Great. So we’re just supposed to, what, start an impromptu gym class and see who takes the longest to break a sweat?” Brown sounded exasperated. </p><p>	“It could work…” Pink had their chin in their hand. </p><p>	Yellow sighed. “Sure. Why not hold a hot dog eating competition while we’re at it. This ship’s already a fucking circus.”</p><p>	“Purple, how are people infected with the imposter parasites, exactly?” Green asked. </p><p>	“Hmm…” Purple swiped at their tablet. “Well, it’s not fully confirmed, but experts are guessing either through existing orifices or open wounds.”</p><p>	Everyone awkwardly gave Blue the side-eye, though Brown was the only one to speak up.</p><p>	“So it’s probably Blue?”</p><p>	Blue’s eyes widened at the accusation, but their partner was quick to defend them. </p><p>	“It’s <i>not</i> Blue.” Green scooted a bit closer to their partner. “I… I would’ve noticed-,” </p><p>	“But they are the only one of us who was wounded on Polus,” Cyan stated pointedly, waving their fork for emphasis. </p><p>	“Hey. No finger pointing,” Orange said, their harsh stare sweeping the table. </p><p>	“It’s just as likely a parasite got into the ventilation and infected someone while they slept,” Red added. “Let’s not jump to conclusions.” </p><p>	Despite Red’s words, there was nervous shifting around the table as people eyed one another. White grabbed Black’s arm, suddenly wary of the anxious energy filling the room. </p><p>	<i>Someone here is planning to murder the others…</i></p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black stared at the faces of the people they’d been on this ship with for weeks. Though the crewmates had initially all been friends, now mistrust colored their gazes as people leaned closer to those they trusted. </p><p>	“On a more positive note, we’ve been authorized to re-route to the nearest base to get scanned and pick up parts to repair broken machinery,” Red announced.</p><p>	“...If we live that long,” Brown muttered. Nobody laughed. </p><p>	“Wait…” Next to Black, White spoke up. “What if there was more than one imposter?” They were still clutching Black’s arm, and Black couldn’t help but feel a little burst of affection in their chest for the crewmate. </p><p>	“Well, it’s possible, but the damage that’s been done seems minimal if there really are two.” Purple didn’t look up from their tablet, but Black felt as if they’d aimed their words carefully. </p><p>	<i>Is Purple trying to call me out for not completing any sabotage?</i></p><p>	“Isn’t it weird that nobody’s been… killed yet?” Blue asked cautiously. They seemed to sit more defensively than usual, and were picking at a sticker on their tablet. </p><p>	“Nice try, imposter.” Brown’s words were laced with suspicion, and Blue dug their nails into their tablet as their face twisted. Waves of stress washed off them, but Black found themself uninterested in the pain of the crewmate. </p><p>	“<i>Brown.</i>” Orange hissed. </p><p>	“What, it’s entirely possible,” Brown said, gesturing as they talked. </p><p>	Yellow frowned at them. “Kind of sus of you to jump to an accusation so quickly.”</p><p>	“Oh, and you’re helping a lot with your sarcastic remarks.” Brown glared back at Yellow, who maintained their disdainful frown. </p><p>	Just as Yellow opened their mouth to reply, Red broke in. </p><p>	“Neither of you are helping. If we want this to be a productive conversation-,” </p><p>	“There isn’t much room for <i>productive conversation</i> when certain people are throwing out random accusations,” Pink exclaimed, and Brown responded almost immediately.</p><p>	“I’m going off logic! Do you <i>want</i> to die?” Brown's voice rose.</p><p>	“Plenty of other people went out and could have gotten infected!” Green’s voice was louder than usual, and they put a protective arm around Blue. “Pink and Yellow nearly got blown up, and you expect us to believe they were completely unscathed? And Purple and Black <i>met</i> an imposter!” </p><p>	White gripped Black’s arm tighter. “Black is <i>not</i> an imposter…” They were drowned out by more voices, all yelling accusations over each other. Green defending Blue, Brown dumping their paranoia into the conversation, Red and Orange trying to maintain order, Yellow making snappy remarks, and Pink arguing with Brown. Purple of course remained silent, pretending to ignore the conversation in favor of their tablet. Black stroked White’s hair as the other crewmate gave up on the argument. Cyan stared around the table, and Blue started crying, hiding their face with their hands. The kids had begun to stare at the adults, though they remained at their own table, quietly observing. </p><p>	At last, Red slammed their hands down on the table and shouted, “That’s enough!” </p><p>	“Yeah, I’m done with this.” Yellow stood up and headed for the admin hallway, Pink following them with a cold glare over their shoulder. </p><p>	“Fuck you too!” Brown stomped in the other direction. </p><p>	“We will continue this conversation another time.” Black wasn’t sure if Red’s words were meant as more of a statement or a threat. Nevertheless, the captain said something more quietly to Orange and then left the table. Orange sighed and picked up their tray, depositing it in the sink before heading for the admin hallway. </p><p>	The remaining crewmates were quiet. Green was softly murmuring to a sniffling Blue, Purple was still pretending to be engrossed in whatever they were doing on their tablet, and Cyan scooted over to White and Black.</p><p>	“Does that… usually happen?” they asked in a quieter voice than usual. </p><p>	White, who had loosened their grip on Black’s arm, shook their head. “No…”</p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	For the rest of the day, the Skeld was plagued with an unnatural silence. White hated it. Even as they were usually in the communications room, there’d be some familiar bustle about the ship. Yet now there was an absence of Brown poking their head into the room to give an unsolicited annoying comment, or Red lecturing someone on some job done badly. Even the kids were quiet, seemingly having sensed the uncomfortable atmosphere.</p><p>	The kids were now on the floor of the communications room, quietly coloring. White was used to their presence but not their silence, and kept feeling the urge to turn around and make sure they weren’t getting into trouble as was usually the case. </p><p>	White busied themself with making sure there were no new messages from HQ or any other bases. The afternoon went by surprisingly quickly, but maybe that was just a result of White burying themself in work. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Another meeting was called later that night, though this meeting was via the group chat instead of in person. Perhaps Red had thought that hiding behind a screen would somehow quell the tempers of the crewmates. Unfortunately, they were wrong.</p><p>[Brown] i am n o t discussing this with a killer<br/>[Green] Good, Blue and I don’t want to talk to you either.<br/>[Red] Brown please participate in the discussion. This is for the good of the crew.<br/>[Pink] Nope literally just leave them out of it we dont need them<br/>[Brown] fuck you all<br/>[Blue] Im not an imposter guys I swear<br/>[Orange] Its okay, theres no evidence against you. We arent going to do anything without sufficient evidence<br/>[Purple] When are we arriving at the base?<br/>[Red] About 6 days. </p><p>Black froze at that. <i>Six days…</i> </p><p>They weren’t afraid of being caught. They knew it was in the crew’s best interest, in <i>White's</i> best interest, and they had a sinking feeling that they wouldn’t be able to kill anyone if they tried. But Purple was definitely prepared to kill. And they'd feel more pressured to now that there wasn't much time until they'd be caught...</p><p>	The rest of the ‘meeting’ was composed of meaningless finger pointing and circular discussions. To nobody’s surprise, it once again ended in failure. </p><p>	That night, Black fell asleep much later than usual. The sinking feeling in their stomach felt like a black hole now, a void of dread, and when they finally did drift off, they dreamt of death.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0020"><h2>20. Vents Have Great Acoustics</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Black uses the ship's ventilation system to look for White... Will they be too late?</p><p>Warning: Violence!!</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The security camera was still in pieces. </p><p>	Black sat back, staring down at it. The device had been smashed, and they couldn’t help but curse Purple in their mind. </p><p>	<i>Thanks a lot, now I have too much work and not enough time to see White…</i></p><p>	The thought of White made an anxious spark flare up in Black. They hadn’t seen the crewmate since breakfast. It felt like it’d been hours. </p><p>	<i>Why can’t I just stop worrying about them? They’d hate me if they knew what I was…</i></p><p>	Black shook their head, but failed to dislodge White’s face from their mind. </p><p>	<i>Someone’s going to die today… What if it’s them?</i> </p><p>	The thought made Black curl up their fists. Their nails bit into their palms. </p><p>	<i>Why do I love them?</i> </p><p>	<i>I’m an imposter. I shouldn’t feel love.</i></p><p>	They stood, and before they knew it their feet were carrying them out of the electrical room. </p><p>	<i>A visit to communications won’t hurt…</i></p><p>	Their heart seemed to pound as they neared the room. </p><p>	<i>They have to be here…</i></p><p>	They weren’t.</p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	White had left the communications room in a rush. </p><p>	<i>They can’t have gone far… They’re barely more than a toddler… How far could they have run on those stubby little legs?</i></p><p>	In truth, Lime could be long gone. White had been so focused on their work that they hadn’t bothered to turn around, but Lime’s paper and markers lay on the floor and the other children claimed not to know where they’d gone. </p><p>	<i>They can’t have gone far…</i> </p><p>	Shields had been empty, as usual. White had peered around the room, thinking perhaps Lime had ducked behind one of the pieces of equipment and was now giggling as they waited for White to come find them. </p><p>	But there was no flash of the little neon child, and White continued down the hallway. </p><p>	The door to the navigation room was closed. </p><p>	Panic swelled in White’s stomach as they hurriedly pulled out their ID card to press against the sensor. There was an imposter on the loose, and now a small child was missing. Never a good combination.</p><p>	The sensor bleeped happily, and the doors slid open. White started down the short hallway that led to the room and stopped when Purple stepped out in front of them. </p><p>	<i>What’s Purple doing in the navigation room?</i> As far as White could tell, the room was empty aside from the doctor.</p><p>	“Purple? Have you seen Lime?” White asked them. </p><p>	Wait. Something else was wrong. </p><p>	Purple stepped closer to them. Their eyes glinted strangely, hiding some emotion White couldn’t quite place. </p><p>	<i>They aren’t wearing their helmet. Aren’t we supposed to be wearing those?</i></p><p>	In spite of themself, White stepped backwards. “Why… Why aren’t you wearing your helmet?”</p><p>	Purple’s eyes narrowed as a smile spread across their face. White felt a shiver run down their back. Purple never smiled. </p><p>	“Are you missing someone?” They asked in an uncharacteristically sweet voice.</p><p>	“I…” White paused as they heard something. A shuffling, something that sounded like a muffled sob. “Lime?”</p><p>	They pushed past Purple into the room. Sure enough, in the corner sat the child, curled up and whimpering. </p><p>	White hurried to Lime’s side. “Lime, are you okay?” </p><p>	Lime sniffled, turning to look at White. White removed their own helmet so Lime could see their face, then gasped when they saw the tear in Lime’s suit. It was already bloody, and though it was less than the length of an ID card, it looked much larger compared to Lime's tiny leg.</p><p>	<i>Did Purple do this?</i></p><p>	“It’s me,” White assured them, trying to keep the tremor out of their voice. “Lime, it’s okay…” They froze as a sensor chirped. Spinning around, White caught a glimpse of Purple standing next to the card sensor, the doors sliding shut next to them. </p><p>	“Purple, what the hell is going on?” White growled, positioning themself between Purple and Lime. Their gut twisted as Purple advanced towards them, still smiling. </p><p>	Purple was pulling something out of their pocket. White recognized the plastic sheath of the MIRA-assigned pocketknife each crewmate carried. </p><p>	White copied their action, pulling out their own knife and flicking it open as Purple did. </p><p>	“Aww, how sweet. You’re going to defend them?” Purple smiled and tilted their head to the side. They raised their knife, the blade already having a red glint to it.</p><p>	White held their ground. Their mind was going haywire; they had no idea what to do. They’d never actually fought anyone before, not like this. </p><p>	Then Purple lunged at them.</p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“They told us to wait here,” Lavender said after Black asked where White was. “They went to look for Lime.” </p><p>	Immediately Black felt as if they’d been hit by the very ship they were in. </p><p>	“Where’d they go?” Black asked Lavender and Crimson, and the two kids pointed towards the shields room. Black thanked them and left the communications room. </p><p>	They hadn’t gone more than a few steps when they caught sight of a grate in the wall. </p><p>	<i>A vent…</i> </p><p>	A large vent, one that a small child could easily fit through…</p><p>	<i>Or be pulled through…</i></p><p>	Black stiffened at the realization. Taking a quick look around to ensure they were alone, they cautiously lifted the vent’s cover and crawled into it. </p><p>	Navigating the vents of the Skeld was easy, though Black had only done it a few times. Of course, their enhanced vision certainly helped, but finding their way into rooms was easily achievable through a combination of avoiding the voices of other crewmates and simple spatial memory. </p><p>	They continued through the vent, listening closely for any voices. This time, though, not to avoid. </p><p>	A yell echoed through the vent, and Black immediately travelled towards the sound. They found themself looking up through a grate, hearing a scuffle from above. </p><p>	Black burst out of the vent. They found themself standing in front of White and Purple, both of whom were breathing heavily and seemed to be in a standoff of sorts. White stood gripping the arm of Lime, pointing a knife at Purple. Purple, who was nearer to Black than White, turned to face them. </p><p>	“Black, you shouldn’t be here. Everyone knows you’re always with White, go get an alibi or something.” </p><p>	“You can’t kill them.” Black’s statement came out more solid than they’d expected. </p><p>	Purple furrowed their brow. “Why not.” Their words were challenging, laced with veiled threats sharper than the knife they held. </p><p>	“They-I-I love them,” Black stammered, searching for any hint of sympathy in Purple’s eyes. </p><p>	Purple’s eye twitched ever so slightly. “Is this a joke?” Their tone had reverted back to a clipped monotone, not unlike the one they usually used. </p><p>	“No. I won’t let you hurt them.” Black planted their feet into the ground. </p><p>	They didn’t feel the knife pierce their skin at first. One second Purple was standing, slightly turned to them, and the next, they’d thrust the pocketknife into Black’s stomach and ripped it out again. </p><p>	For a single second time stood still. Black’s eyes traveled down to the gash in their suit, a gash that now bubbled with blood. </p><p>	Then there was a flash of pain and the world went dark. </p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	“<i>NO!</i>” White’s scream ripped from their throat. Everything seemed to be in slow motion as they threw themself at Purple, knocking the imposter away from Black. Purple’s head hit one of the navigation panels and they froze, stunned for a moment. White took the opportunity to throw Purple’s knife across the room. </p><p>	Rage hazed White’s vision as their hands closed around Purple’s throat. This person had injured Lime and Black, probably would have killed them if White wasn’t there…</p><p>	“<i>White!</i> What are you doing?” Blue exclaimed as someone grabbed White’s arms and dragged them off Purple. </p><p>	“Let me go! They- Purple was trying to kill them!” White thrashed, but the person behind them pinned their arms behind their back. “Stop!” Purple was still alive, trying to catch their breath as they glared at White. </p><p>	“You’re a liar,” Purple accused in between gasps. Blue ran to them, asking if they were okay. </p><p>	“You were just trying to kill Purple.” Green’s voice was close to White’s ear, thick with suspicion. “One of you is lying here.”</p><p>	“It’s-it’s them!” White felt tears welling in their eyes. Panic erupted in their mind. </p><p>	<i>Am I going to die? Am I going to be ejected?</i></p><p>	“I walked in on you stabbing Black.” Purple stepped towards Black, who was still unconscious. Their eyes narrowed at White, and so did Blue’s. “I tried to help them.”</p><p>	“<i>Don’t go near them!</i>” White made another attempt to get free, to stop Purple from reaching Black. <i>They’re going to kill them…</i> But Green shoved them forwards, pressing their face into the cold tile floor of the room. “<i>Please,</i> don’t let-,”</p><p>	“What’s going on?” Red’s voice seemed somehow louder than ever. Everyone froze for a second, then they all started talking at once. White did their best to speak over the others, but due to how frantic everyone was, their efforts were lost in the sea of voices. Somewhere in the background, Lime started wailing. </p><p>	“Stop, stop, stop,” Red ordered. The crewmates quieted enough for Orange to speak.</p><p>	“Purple needs to help Black.” </p><p>	“<i>NO!</i>” White shrieked, the words suddenly tumbling out. “They stabbed them! They’re going to kill them, they’re an impostor!”</p><p>	They were met with a flurry of accusations, but were able to shove Green away and run to Black, who seemed to be stirring. The others advanced, but Red stopped them. </p><p>	“Get Yellow,” they told Orange, who nodded and exited the room. </p><p>	Purple once again tried to step nearer to Black. Their voice took on a hint of concern, insisting to White that Black would bleed out if they didn’t do something. </p><p>	“No- you’re going to hurt them,” White insisted, standing their ground even as their voice shook. “Don’t touch them…”</p><p>	“White, you need to do something,” Blue insisted. “I’ll help, I took first aid classes.”</p><p>	White reluctantly let them approach and kneel besides Black, who winced ever so slightly as Blue began to apply pressure to Black’s wound. They glanced to where Lime was, and relief washed over them as they saw Red kneeling next to the child, comforting them. </p><p>	Yellow arrived soon after, and White and Purple were ushered out of the room. They were suspects, but White was okay with that.</p><p>	<i>Just as long as Purple doesn’t go near Black. I can’t let them near Black.</i></p><p>	“What happened?” Brown asked White, leaning against the wall casually. Most of the crew had gathered in or near Navigation, with Orange closely watching both White and Purple. </p><p>	“It’s Purple,” White breathed. “They… They tried to kill Black…” </p><p>	“You’re a good liar, White.” Purple’s voice had lost much of its smoothness to spite. They stood farther down the hallway, next to Green. Orange shot them a warning look. </p><p>	“I’m not a liar.” White locked eyes with Purple. </p><p>	Behind White, quick footsteps tapped across the floor. They turned to see Red, who’d just emerged from the navigation room. </p><p>	Red’s statement was certain as they spoke.</p><p>	“It’s Purple.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0021"><h2>21. Confession</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Black clears a few things up with the crew. </p><p>Also Lime is BABY in every sense of the word. Poor child.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The minute the words were spoken, Purple sprung into action. White turned to see them reach Orange and grab for the knife Orange was holding.</p><p>	Red and Green ran to Orange just as Purple flicked open the knife. They forced Purple to the ground and began dragging them as Purple yelled obscenities, promising that they’d all die horrible deaths. White, Pink, Brown and Cyan trailed the group, cautiously bracing for Purple to somehow wrench themself free of the others and make a run for it. </p><p>	They made it to the airlock, Orange quickly pressing their card to the sensor and helping Red and Green to haul Purple inside. Purple’s fists banged on the reinforced glass that made up the inner airlock door. </p><p>	White covered their ears, not wanting to hear Purple’s screams as they were shot into the empty void of space. Still, they watched Orange press a few buttons on the panel next to the airlock, opening the outer door. Purple was yanked out of the small chamber, quickly becoming a violet speck among the stars. </p><p>	“Well, that’s… over with,” Red stated. “I was going to explain that Black had awoken and told us Purple had stabbed them, but… I suppose Purple’s belligerence speaks for itself.” </p><p>	“Black’s awake?” </p><p>	Red barely nodded before White began running. They had to see Black, had to talk to them, had to make sure they were all right…</p><p>	The navigation room was similar to the way they’d left it. Black was laying on the floor still, though bandages covered their stomach. Lime was sitting nearby, still sniffling but looking a bit better since their leg was bandaged. Blue was gently offering them a piece of candy, and Yellow was carefully typing something onto their tablet. </p><p>	Black looked up as White entered, but their expression was unreadable. </p><p>	“Black!” White hurried to their side. “You’re okay…”</p><p>	“We’re going to move them and Lime into Medbay as soon as the others get back,” Yellow said. “Thankfully, they’re stable.” </p><p>	“White…” Black’s voice was choked with emotion. </p><p>	“No, it’s okay, you don’t have to talk.” White grasped their hand. “You’re hurt.”</p><p>	“No… White, about what Purple said…” Black drew in a breath. “I need to tell you something.”</p><p>	“Uh… Here?” White gestured around the room. The others were starting to come in, lingering near the doorway. 	</p><p>	Black nodded weakly. “You all need to know.”</p><p>	“Know what?” Brown stepped forward. </p><p>	“Don’t crowd them,” Yellow warned. </p><p>	Black avoided the eyes of the other crewmates as they began to speak. “Purple was an imposter, but… I’m one too.” </p><p>	Their statement received mixed reactions. It seemed as if everyone had something to say, and they all began talking over one another. </p><p>	“What the fuck?” Brown exclaimed, immediately stiffening. </p><p>	“Black, no… It has to be a lie…” Blue’s face fell, and Green hurried to their side, placing themself between Black and Blue. </p><p>	“Black, did you hit your head?” Yellow tilted their head to the side, placing their tablet on the floor next to their helmet. </p><p>	“Black.” Red spoke sharply. The others fell silent to let their captain speak. “Explain further.” </p><p>	It seemed as though the crowd had tightened into a half-circle. The other crewmates skirted the edge, poised defensively yet ready to seize Black and drag them out the airlock with Purple. </p><p>	White held Black’s hand tighter. Black didn’t meet their gaze. </p><p>	“...We were both infected on the day we met Gray,” Black continued. “But I… I didn’t want to kill anyone. I still don’t. I think-,”</p><p>	Green cut them off. “No way. You just convinced us to eject Purple. And now you admit to being an imposter too?”</p><p>	“It does sound kind of off…” Pink’s eyes were wide. </p><p>	“But if Black is an imposter, why would they betray Purple?” Orange stood next to Red, looking equally as imposing. “It would make much more sense if it was only Black…”</p><p>	“No.” White returned the hostile gazes of the crewmates. “Purple… Purple tried to kill me. And Lime. Black saved us.” They were unable to stop their voice from shaking. “You can’t kill them.”</p><p>	“They’re an imposter!” Brown protested. “They could kill us!”</p><p>	“Are they in any state to do that?” Orange gave Brown a pointed look. “I doubt they’ll heal fully by the time we get to the base, anyways. We can figure out what to do then.”</p><p>	“With all due respect, isn’t that against protocol?” Green remained defensive. </p><p>	“I think we can ignore protocol for a few days. Black is in no state to hurt anyone, and they haven’t been confirmed as an imposter. This could very well be due to some kind of brain injury.” Red folded their arms in front of themself. “But I do agree we need to take precautions. Cyan, is there any protocol for this situation?”</p><p>Cyan shook their head. “I don’t think so, but I can look…” Even though Cyan’s helmet was on, White somehow could tell they were eyeing them and Black. </p><p>White ignored the others as they let a small smile spread across their face. </p><p>Black was safe, at least for now.</p><p>	★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★・・・・・・★</p><p>	Black was eventually moved to Medbay by White, Yellow and Pink. They noted that Green and Blue made a point of avoiding them, though the two thankfully didn’t do anything more aggressive. </p><p>	The rest of the crew seemed iffy on the whole situation, which was better than Black thought things would go. They fully expected to be among the stars right now, far from the ship. </p><p>	“Black, are you really an imposter?” White asked them after Yellow had stitched up their wound. They stood by the side of the cot Black occupied, face gentle as ever despite Black’s confession.</p><p>	“Why would I have lied?” Black watched closely for their reaction.</p><p>	White was silent for a moment. Their eyes searched Black’s face, still full of kindness yet also sharpened by curiosity. </p><p>	“What made you change?”</p><p>	The question surprised Black. At first, they weren’t sure what to make of it, until they realized what White really wanted to know. </p><p>	“I couldn’t kill someone I loved.” Black knew their answer was risky. Nobody would want to love an imposter. “I… don’t blame you if you don’t feel the same any more, though.” They glanced towards the bed Lime occupied. The child was complaining about their leg to Yellow.</p><p>	“Black…” White’s voice wavered. “Why wouldn’t I love you?”</p><p>	“A lot of reasons, but mainly, you know, the whole murderous parasite infection,” Black mumbled. They didn’t want to look at White’s face, didn’t want to know if their expression matched their tone of voice.</p><p>	Suddenly arms wrapped around them, familiar and warm. </p><p>	“It’s not your fault,” White whispered to them. Even then, their sweet voice cracked. </p><p>	Black reached up to run a hand through White’s hair. “I… But I almost helped Purple kill you all. I almost did it… I <i>wanted</i> to feed on human pain, White. I wanted people to die…” They stopped, realizing they were trembling, and their eyes were stinging with tears threatening to spill.</p><p>	White only held them closer. “But you fought it. You stopped it. You helped me.” </p><p>	“I…” Black couldn’t finish their sentence. The tears that had been gathering dripped down their cheeks as they blinked, leaning further into White. “I love you.”</p><p>	“I love you too.” White’s hand caressed Black’s hair, making its way to their cheek. Black raised their head. </p><p>	White’s eyes were brimming with emotions. Their hand traced Black’s jaw, pulling them in closer, and Black closed their eyes as they leaned in. </p><p>	The instant White’s lips touched theirs it was as if fireworks were going off in Black’s heart. They ran their fingers through White’s hair, stroking their cheek as they tenderly kissed them. </p><p>	“I’ll never abandon you,” White murmured after they’d pulled apart, and Black nearly cried again.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>{Yellow's Personal Journal}</p><p>48 days after takeoff</p><p>Today we figured out who the imposter was. Or imposters, provided Black doesn't have brain damage and was actually truthfully admitting themself to be an imposter. I had to bandage Lime, poor kid, but more annoyingly I had to distract them while White and Black decided Medbay was the best place for some impromptu PDA. I am not ready to answer some four year old's questions about why both of their substitute parental figures are playing tonsil hockey.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0022"><h2>22. Epilogue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Just a lil epilogue :)</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>White hurried down the hall of HQ. It wasn’t a large building, but White was determined not to hold up the ship waiting for them. </p><p>	They finally arrived at the door of the admin office where Black was supposedly being cleared of the parasite in their system. Finally.</p><p>	It had been months since the Skeld had finished its mission on Polus, months of medical evaluations, back-and-forth with MIRA representatives and admins, months of waiting for researchers to get data back to them. But finally it was over. </p><p>	Black was no longer infected. </p><p>	White grinned as soon as Black emerged from the room. Their partner was beaming, and they ran to White and embraced them as soon as the two met eyes. No words needed to be said. </p><p>	The medic who’d cleared them walked out of the room, handing Black a small stack of papers. </p><p>	“Final clearance,” the medic told them. “Make sure your colony director gets it.” Black nodded to them and headed down the hall with White. </p><p>	“You’re finally done,” White teased them. “The kids were getting impatient.” </p><p>	Black chuckled, a light, easy sound that White knew they’d never tire of. “Well, we’ll have all the time in the world once we reach the colony.” </p><p>	“Sure.” White nudged them playfully as they continued down the hall. They hoped they’d never see this hall again, that they’d never have to visit Headquarters as long as they lived. They’d had enough of the base for one lifetime. </p><p>	Black grasped their hand as the two rounded the final corner to the docked ship. It would be taking them to their new home soon, the colony they’d live on with Black, Lavender, Crimson and Lime. </p><p>	<i>Home.</i></p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Whew! That's the end of the longest fic I've ever written. </p><p>If you have any feedback for me, please do leave it in the comments! I'd appreciate it greatly as it'll help me improve my writing in the future. </p><p>I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>